


Everglow

by Skyclimber



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pirate, Alternate Universe - Space, Blood, M/M, Slow Build, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-26
Updated: 2019-11-27
Packaged: 2019-12-18 10:04:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 59,405
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18247622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skyclimber/pseuds/Skyclimber
Summary: Oikawa's planet has been swallowed by darkness.  An ancient prophesy reveals a Map to a way to save the planet.  Oikawa is forced to join Iwaizumi's crew in search for treasure, salvation and mischief.





	1. Chapter 1

Oikawa startled awake to a hand being pressed on his shoulder and shaking him. Oikawa’s eyes darted around the room looking for an adversary, but everything was still. He saw the face of his bodyguard barely outlined against the pitch-black darkness of the room. His eyes focused in on Yahaba who crouched next to the bed. When his guard saw he was calm, he removed his hand and moved his mouth next to Oikawa’s ear.

“Something has happened, I need you to come with me right now to the councilor’s chambers,” Yahaba’s warm breath caused a shiver to run down Oikawa’s back but he shook it away and nodded. Yahaba moved away from his bedside, allowing Oikawa to rise and grab his robe.

“I think you may want to get fully dressed, I am not sure we will have time to come back here. Grab anything else of major value to you,” Yahaba whispered quietly. Oikawa shot him a confused look but didn’t waste anymore time, quickly throwing on his pants and loose shirt. He scanned the room for a few of his belongings before tucking them away into his pockets. On the way out, Yahaba grabbed one of his thick fleece-trimmed hooded cloaks. Oikawa’s eyes widened but Yahaba pleaded for him to follow him with no more delay. 

Oikawa’s ears were pounding as he followed Yahaba through the winding path to get to the councilor’s chambers. The halls were silent save for their racing steps. There were very few lightstones lit, giving the hall an air of endlessness with the darkness only broken by the faint glow at long intervals. His adrenaline pushed his muscles to move harder, faster until he nearly overtook Yahaba in reaching the door to the chamber. He could hear voices on the inside and it sounded like they were excited. It was a stark contrast to the silence of the hall. No guards or knights were running around preparing for anything; everything seemed normal. Oikawa was going over the past few days’ events trying to think of anything that had gone wrong that could elicit this level of response and yet be this quiet. Nothing came to mind which worried Oikawa even more, what had they missed? What had he missed?

They finally reached the door, but just before Oikawa could burst through, one of his Councilors, Sadayuki Mizoguchi, opened the door and stepped through. He looked Oikawa over briefly before nodding and turning to Yahaba, who handed him the cloak. Mizoguchi wrapped the cloak around Oikawa’s shoulders before pulling the hood up over his head. A million things were going through Oikawa’s mind; he couldn’t say anything at all.

“The time has come for you to fulfill the prophecy,” Oikawa let out a sharp exhale. The world opened up under his feet. Oikawa felt like he was free falling, goosebumps raised over his whole body. His head snaped up to look Mizoguchi in the eye, but the older man just pulled him into a hug and pushed Oikawa’s head into his shoulder. “You have to be strong. Stronger than you ever have been. Yahaba will be going with you.” Oikawa felt his whole-body tingling as he slowly regained feeling back to his limbs. He wrapped his arms tightly around the man in front of him.

“But where? How? What will happen to you without me here?”

“There isn’t much time. A ship stumbled upon our planet, they have a way off and have agreed to take you and Yahaba with them, they do not know your identity and you MUST keep it that way! Do you understand me? We have only scratched the surface of the information on your map, we can’t let it fall into the wrong hands. You will go with them and travel until you come across the land foretold in the prophecy and then you will save us all,” The man was breathing heavily now, trying to hold back his tears. Oikawa felt a hand on his back, he turned slightly to see Yahaba, who had also put on a long cloak, staring at the door.

“Your Highness, it is time to go.” With that, Mizuguchi pulled away, but not before pulling Oikawa down and kissing his forehead.

“I know you will save us. I always have been and always will be proud of you.” With that, he pulled Oikawa’s hood down to cover most of his face and lead him into the chamber where people were still discussing quietly.

“Ah, here they are, our two best knights,” That was Grandmaster Nobuteru Irihata’s voice. So, he was undercover as a knight with Yahaba. What was going on with this traveler that he would allow two unknown knights to travel with him?

“And what will the payment be for their company?” A deep voice resonated from across the room. Not only was he inviting two foreign knights to travel with him, but he was willing to pay for them? Oikawa grew suspicious even with this individual obviously having the councilors blessing. 

Oikawa finally lifted his head to look straight on. The room was as bright as Oikawa had ever seen a room outside of his training. But that’s not what held his attention. A barrel-chested man stood across the room from Oikawa. He wore a loose shirt and pants, similar to Oikawa’s. His dark eyes quickly scanned over him and Yahaba. Oikawa tried to be just as brief in his look over the stranger but the more he looked the harder it was to look away. He settled himself on tilting his head back and holding eye contact with the man. He shifted his weight into a position of what he hoped was one of lazy confidence. They maintained each other’s hold for what felt like an eternity. 

“No such payment is needed, just take them in as your own and let them travel with you,” Irihata replied. The sound broke their connection and Oikawa remembered he was in a room with other people. Oikawa cleared his throat before looking away, towards the councilors. Oikawa could hear shuffling across the room before boots appeared before him. Oikawa’s pulse spiked back up impossibly high. A hand was suddenly presented to him. Oikawa panicked, knowing that if he reached out, the mysterious markings on his hands would be revealed. However, he could not let that stop him, it seemed like this man knew nothing of their customs or what the markings could mean so Oikawa took a leap and grasped the man’s hand. Noting that the pale blue dots and lines were barely visible in this lighting, Oikawa shifted his gaze to the other man’s hand. His hand was warm and firm, strong and solid, tanned but not leathery. A trustworthy hand. 

“Name’s Iwaizumi, glad to have you joining us,” The man spoke plain and simple Common tongue, but his voice warmed the jitters coursing through Oikawa.

Oikawa nodded and replied, “Oikawa, thank you for the opportunity,” Iwaizumi must have been satisfied with that because he moved over to Yahaba. As he withdrew his hand, Iwaizumi’s callouses brushed along the length of Oikawa’s fingers. Tingles ran up the length of Oikawa’s arm. Oikawa held his breath as he held eye Iwaizumi’s eyes before he turned to face Yahaba. They had a similar exchange before Iwaizumi faced Oikawa again.

“When will you be ready to depart?” Iwaizumi spoke smoothly, commanding the attention of the room.

A sac was handed to Oikawa and a small trunk for Yahaba before it was announced, “They are ready now.” Oikawa took steading breaths to avoid breaking down right then and there. In the end, he took one last deep breath before peeking out from under his hood to glance at Iwaizumi and nod his affirmation.

With a curt nod in reply, Iwaizumi scanned the room one more time for any sign that they were not ready before he turned and made way for the exit, Yahaba close behind. Oikawa took a brief moment to hug Irihata and Mizuguchi one last time before marching after the duo.

After walking through the castle for a little while longer, they exited to the ever-dark city. The planet had been cloaked under a veil of darkness for the past six decades with no explanation. At first there was nothing but panic and anarchy. Then the city-state stepped up and proved that this was not the end of the world. The alchemists and scientists worked together to cultivate new breeds of crops that didn’t require the sunlight. They created sustainable bioluminescence lamps that would sustain the people as well. The population was not thriving, but it was slowly rebuilding itself. That is until just recently, an infection spread through their crops and wiped out nearly the entire breed they had cultivated. The planet was once again in a life-threatening famine. All attempts to combat the disease had been a failure. Thankfully, the council had thought ahead and had been storing food in case of another famine, the supply should last for a while, but it was a major time crunch to replace the dead crops. It was starting to look like the only permanent solution for the planet would be the return of the light.

There was an ancient and long-forgotten prophecy regarding the darkness. It foretold of a child born with the map to the light etched on their skin. It is only through this child that the light could be found and the key to returning it to the world. But this held its own plethora of problems. With the loss of solar power, all major forms of travel were lost as well. Traveling around the planet was risky at best, suicidal at worst. No one had arrived or left the planet in any of those six decades. Once Oikawa was ordained as possessing the map, he was studied and compared to all known maps of the planet until it was realized the map on his skin was a map of the stars. Stars no one had seen in nearly a century. People were barely handing onto the hope that the stars existed at all. Yet, every day, Oikawa and the council prayed for a way. 

Ever since he was young, Oikawa had been trained for the mission of leaving the planet. He was trained in languages, history, etiquettes, different types of fighting, and how to best read his map. When the councilors called him a knight, they were not wrong, but to call him only a knight would be a major underestimation. The council even exposed him to as bright of lights as they could create to try to acclimate him to what it would be like outside of the veil of darkness. Oikawa excelled at all that was asked of him, all that was left was a way off the planet. And that way had finally arrived.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Do you have a way off this planet?"  
> "It may be a little far fetched"  
> "I'll take far fetched over impossible."

         Oikawa’s steps were plagued with fear and uncertainty as he walked in step with Iwaizumi.  His stomach was in a knot as he frantically thought back to all of the training he went through.  His hands shook beneath his cloak.  Iwaizumi walked confidently next to him as Yahaba lead the way for the group.  Oikawa peaked around his hood occasionally to steal glances at the foreigner.  Iwaizumi’s jaw was strong, his body built, showing no signs of the ailments that were commonplace among the planet’s inhabitants.  There were probably no holes in his diet, no need to spend hours still next to a lamp in hopes that it was still working.  He had all of his fingers, none of them succumbing to the unforgiving  colds.  But the greatest difference was his skin and hair.  Iwaizumi was tan; he was born and raised under a star, grew up working under its heat, his hair a dark thick black.  Oikawa had never seen someone look like this.  Everyone here was pale and had light, thin hair.   Oikawa, himself, was just as pale, with the exception of the light blue map over his skin, but even that was fair.  His hair was stark white, supposedly another mark of his nature as the map.

         Yahaba turned another corner, to the edge of the city, the farthest Oikawa had ever been away from the castle since he was a child.  Oikawa trusted Yahaba knew where he was going due to his training as an actual knight.  Even though Oikawa had been trained as a knight, they kept him within the castle for safety.  The gates were opened as they approached, meaning the council must have sent word out, but he also guessed it was not well known that the Map was finally leaving the planet because the streets were still as quiet as usual.  As they stepped outside of the gates, with nothing more than a nod from the guards, Iwaizumi took the lead. 

         They walked briskly through the abandoned fields, avoiding the muck that surrounded the road.  Oikawa didn’t know a lot about how they created new strains of plants in order to have food without the sun, but he was told it had a lot to do with bacteria and insects.  The disease actually attacked the bacteria not the plants themselves, and that resulted in the farmlands turning into an unusable swamp. 

         Iwaizumi’s steps seemed to stutter as he walked down the path.  His head kept turning side to side.  Was he anticipating something to come out of the darkness?  Iwaizumi had been stiff and alert since they left the gate behind, but now he seemed outright hostile toward the darkness.  It suddenly hit Oikawa.  Was he afraid of the dark?  He blinked rapidly as the strength of the realization hit him.  If someone like Iwaizumi was afraid of the dark, was there something to fear in the darkness of other worlds?  Would Oikawa be afraid of the light?  Iwaizumi was someone born of the light, he knew it inside and out, but Oikawa was born in the darkness, it was all that he knew aside from the brief moments of exposure to light.  Oikawa’s breath sped up, what would it be like?  The darkness here was safe, most things that had posed a threat to humans here had died off, and it left the world in a comfortable silence.  Noise said that there was something wrong, lamps coming on was a sign of distress.  How would it be in worlds where light and life were the norm?

         Oikawa watched as a shiver ran down Iwaizumi’s back before his pace resumed its previous surety.  They walked for a little while longer, the lamps becoming fewer and far in-between.  The group grew closer together until even Oikawa could barely see in front of him.  Yahaba moved back to the front of the tight triangle, seeing as he had the most experience traversing the darkness by other senses.  They moved even slower, with the only interactions being their breathing and the quiet apologies when Iwaizumi would bump into one of them.

         Slowly, a glow like Oikawa had never seen became visible on the horizon.  It was a color Oikawa had only seen in books, but never in person.  Yellow.  An audible gasp was heard from Yahaba, and Oikawa wondered if he had let out a similar sound without noticing.  Upon seeing the light, Iwaizumi moved back to the front and pressed forward with a new fervor.  Oikawa couldn’t look away from the light in front of them.  The council had told him about yellow light, but it was not something they were able to recreate for him in his training.  The lights they were able to expose him to were of a similar but brighter nature to the blue-green light emitted by the bioluminescent lamps.  But even from how far away they were, Oikawa could tell this light was significantly brighter than anything he had ever seen, and traveled a greater distance than any of the lights used around the city.

         As they got closer, Oikawa was astounded by how the light moved.  It flickered and waved.  Sometimes it would be so bright Oikawa could only look away in order to shield his eyes, yet other times it would seem like the darkness fought back and pushed the light away.  In times like this, the darkness felt like a physical veil over his face, completely blocking out anything he could have seen before. 

         It was scary how quickly the light grew on him and its effect made its absence increasingly more debilitating by the moment.  Oikawa knew what it meant to be dependent on light to function, but never had the darkness been such a hurdle to be overcome before. 

         Before long, they were within sight of the origin of the light, and all of them were moving with quicker urgency.  From what Oikawa could discern, it looked like… a giant boat!  The light was still too overpowering to look at directly, but Oikawa was able to see more about the boat as they got closer.  It was a massive wooden ship.  The lights were high up the masts, acting as a beacon for Iwaizumi to find his way back.  Iwaizumi’s whole posture changed as the walked further and further into the light of his ship; whether that was from being back to his ship, or if it was being back into the light, Oikawa wasn’t sure.

         Oikawa jumped as Iwaizumi suddenly hailed the ship, “Ho!”  Suddenly multiple heads popped up over the railing, silhouetted against the light.  Cheers rose up from the ship.

         “Captain, you made it back!”  

         “Who do you have with you?”

         “Did anything attack you?” 

         “Did you find a way to get us out of this forsaken swamp?”

         The questions came flying off back to back as Iwaizumi motioned the two closer and pointed out a ladder inlaid into the side of the ship.  He moved up first with Oikawa followed by Yahaba.  Iwaizumi was immediately swept into the crowd of people, getting questioned and checked out before clapped on the back and cheered for.  Few people noticed the two cloaked figures standing off to the side while they celebrated the return of their fearless leader. 

         “How well can you see right now?”  Oikawa leaned over to whisper to Yahaba.

         “I can see general shapes and shadows, but looking up- the light is too bright.  Did you know there where this many colors?”  Oikawa could hear the amazement in his voice.

         Oikawa lifted his head slightly to look through the fringe of his coat in hope to see more.  The crew members were dressed in casual shirts and pants but each of them had a colored piece of fabric tied to their waist.  Some were blue, green, yellow, but a lot of them were colors Oikawa didn’t even know the name of.  The deck of the ship was also a mismatch of woods and colors.  This ship had obviously been through a lot, but what was even more confusing was how this ship traveled.  Oikawa didn’t see anything that wasn’t wood, what powered the ship’s ability to move around?

         Oikawa jumped as he was tapped on the shoulder.  He spun around, coming face to face with an angry looking man who was barely shorter than him.

         “What are you gawking at?  You’re lucky Iwaizumi even let you on board, just do your job and get us off this damned swamp.”  Oikawa took a step back at the blonde’s hostility.  He felt his mouth fall open, trying to come up with something to say.  The man was jerked around to face a tall dark-haired man.

          “Kyotani, go be a dick somewhere else.  Iwaizumi just got back, shouldn’t you still be licking his shoes or something?”  The man spoke with a snicker.  Oikawa thought he saw the blonde’s, Kyotani, hair stand up before he shoved his way past the dark-haired man.  Oikawa looked wide-eyed at Yahaba, but he looked just as shocked by the encounter.  “My name is Matsukawa, I’m one of the senior members of this crew with Iwaizumi.”  He stuck his hand out to Oikawa.

          “Oikawa.  Is he usually like that towards newcomers?”  Oikawa asked with a firm hand shake.

          “Not just newcomers, he’s like that towards everyone except Iwaizumi.  Kid has no respect for his elders,” With that, Matsukawa walked back towards the group and Oikawa quickly turned back to Yahaba.

          “Didn’t Mizoguchi say that they have the way off the planet?  Why did he just tell us to get them off the planet?”  Oikawa’s eyes were wide as he looked around the ship.

          “That’s because this planet is stuck in a black hole.”  A voice behind Oikawa and Yahaba made Oikawa jump.  Iwaizumi had somehow detached himself from the group and was approaching the pair.  The bewildered look on their faces must’ve given them away.  “We can get off the planet, but can’t find our way out on our own.  Your council said you have a map to get us out of the black hole,” Iwaizumi explained.  “But first, let me show you to where you can put your stuff down and we can take a look at that map of yours.  I’ve never heard of a map of a black hole before.” 

         The term “black hole” made Oikawa’s hair stand on end.  It suddenly made sense.  The planet was completely consumed by darkness with no warning, and no signs of any of their neighboring planets.  The complete and sudden isolation for sixty years had been baffling to all the leaders since the moment it happened.  No matter how good relations and alliances were between planets, no one would risk their own people to go into a black hole. 

         An immense weight set in on Oikawa’s shoulders.  Navigating the map on his skin was one thing, but they had never even considered that they were living in a black hole and that the prophecy was saying that the Map was a way to literally bring the planet back into the light.  Oikawa felt sick as he doubted whether or not this was even possible.

         Oikawa and Yahaba exchanged a quick look, worried that Iwaizumi would want to see their “map.”  They followed him regardless of their worry and he led them below deck.  They walked through a hallway of doors until they stopped at the final two.  “This is my quarters.”  Iwaizumi motioned to the door on his right.  “You two can stay together in this room, until you’re set up with the crew.  I don’t want to deal with personality conflicts with trying to room you with them now.  I’ll come back in a little while to get you for breakfast and we can set off from there.”  Oikawa was ready to remark that his personality doesn’t conflict with anyone! But Yahaba agreed and thanked Iwaizumi before he could.  The two walked into their room, which looked to previously be a storage room, now fitted with two beds and a trunk.  This crew worked fast!

         Oikawa let out a long sigh as he closed the door, thereby closing off the light in the hall.  The room was not pitch black, the light from the deck could still be seen through the windows at the end of the room, but it was significantly more comfortable than it was on deck or in the hall.  Yahaba sat on the bed and just covered his eyes with his hands.  Oikawa followed suit and relaxed as all of the pain in his head just faded and his eyes relaxed.  He took one, two, three deep breaths before moving his hands and slowly opening his eyes again.

         “We should try to look at the map ourselves and find a solution before Iwaizumi comes back,” Oikawa heard a faint groan come from Yahaba before he nodded and did the same as Oikawa.  They moved their things into the trunk before Oikawa began to take off his clothes.  Oikawa sat on the floor with his shirt draped over his waist while Yahaba walked around him, looking for a place to start.  Both Oikawa and Yahaba had been trained in how to read maps and star charts, but because of the intricacy of the marks, it was easier for someone else to read it than Oikawa could with the use of a mirror.

         “Did they ever establish where we are?  I mean I guess right now we are in a black hole… In each of the maps we have, the black holes are depicted differently.  Am I just supposed to guess which of these is a black hole and not something else I just don’t know  and work from there?”  Yahaba mumbled behind Oikawa as his fingers tapped around his back.

         “Well, if the planet went dark because its in a black hole then that must be part of the prophesy.  Is there anything that looks isolated or looks more compacted than other places?”  Oikawa looked around his chest and arms while Yahaba looked at his back.

         “Hey, did these lines for the Elcid constellation always not line up together?”  Oikawa felt a finger run down the back of his ribs.  He twisted around to try to see it. “Woah, woah hold on!”  Oikawa faced forward under Yahaba’s complaints.  “Wait…. Do that one more time.”  Oikawa twisted around again.  This time he stayed like that but he still couldn’t see what Yahaba was point to.  “The lines match up now…  There’s a crease going through it but it’s a perfect match.  Could that be a coincidence?”

         Just as Oikawa was about to answer there was a knock on the door right before it burst open.  Oikawa and Yahaba quickly shielded their eyes and turned away from the piercing light in the hall.  Pain exploded behind Oikawa’s eyes but he tried to push it aside.

         “Hey I found you these-“ Iwaizumi’s voice trailed off as he saw the two in the room.  Oikawa tried to peak at Iwaizumi in the door way.   His eyes teared up as he looked into the bright hallway.  He squinted against the light he saw that Iwaizumi was moving into the room and suddenly his hand was on Oikawa’s back.  Yahaba was quick to try to separate Iwaizumi from Oikawa but Oikawa stopped him when he saw the look of concentration on Iwaizumi’s face. “How did you get this map?” Iwaizumi finally looked up to make eye contact with Oikawa and Yahaba.  It seemed to finally dawn on him how much the light was bothering the duo.  Just after that, his close proximity with Oikawa in his nearly naked state also dawned on him.  He took a few steps back and allowed Yahaba to cover Oikawa with his cloak. 

         Iwaizumi looked taken back as he walked back to the door and closed himself in the darkness with the two.  There was an audible sigh of relief from the two as the light no longer burned their eyes.

         “What is going on here?”  Iwaizumi stood with his full breadth and height, towering over the sitting men.  The two shared a look at a loss for what to do.  Telling the truth could mean Iwaizumi refuses to help them.  Lying could shatter the newly formed partnership even quicker.

         “I was born with this map of the stars that the council believes will lead to the salvation of our planet from the darkness,” Oikawa stopped there, not due to wanting to hide anything from the captain, but rather, out respect and not wanting to spread unneeded theories, at least until he asked about the theories.

         Iwaizumi put his hand to his face and shook his head.  “So THAT’S what your council was being so mysterious about,” Oikawa gave Iwaizumi a confused look before Iwaizumi explained, “they kept mentioning the importance of letting you stay in my crew and travel with us until you decided it was time for you to leave our company.”  He stood still for a moment, “tell me this. Can you get us out of this black hole?”

         Oikawa and Yahaba shared a glance and a shrug, “we have an idea, but it might be a little hard to believe.”

         “Getting out of a black hole is crazy enough, I think I can handle a hard to believe idea for an impossible feat.”

         “OK then, we need to go to the far north-east end of the black hole,” Yahaba spoke up quickly.

         “Any reason why that particular direction?”  Iwaizumi leaned against the wall.

         “We’ll explain our idea if it actually works out,” Oikawa said with a smile towards Iwaizumi.  Iwaizumi rolled his eyes but agreed non the less.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me start off by saying thank you so so so much for everyone who read and liked last chapter, but I want to give a major thanks to everyone who left a comment! Your comments just made me so much more excited to keep writing!  
> I hope you liked this chapter too! <3  
> Also! I have a bunch of exams this week, so I'm not sure about the timing for the next chapter but I'll have it out as soon as I can :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OOOOH boy hold on ya'll its happening!

              Breakfast went by in a flash.  The crew moved like a well-oiled machine, eating, joking around before flipping a switch and getting this ship into travel shape.  The large over head lights were doused in exchange for each worker wearing small lightstones tied loosely around their necks.

              Oikawa and Yahaba were working under Hanamaki, another senior of the ship, in rigging the sails – which Oikawa learned powered the whole ship.  The ship - Blue Castle - had a back-up power system that would be able to get them off the planet and back into open space - which is brimming with solar power and radiation, the sails then collect and transfer into motion.

              Oikawa also learned about the use of the colored cloths on each of the crewmembers’ belts.  They were all sweating within minutes of preparing the ship.  Between climbing the shrouds to reach different levels of the sails or holding a weight-bearing rope in place while another member works to unravel a tangled section of the main sail, the men were constantly using their rags and sleeves to wipe the sweat from their eyes.

              But there was one main thing resounding through Oikawa’s head, “What is this sail made of to make it so damn _heavy_?”  Just as he thought the cramp in his back would never go away, he heard the call from up above that he could release the line.  Just before releasing his grip, he looked up to see Watari dangling upside down from the waist with his legs wrapped in the shrouds as he held the, now clear, rope that had kept Oikawa from freely releasing the last sail.  Oikawa couldn’t help the smile that broke out across his face as Watari waved down to him, a smile on his face too.  Oikawa called that he was releasing the sail and with that, his job was done and the ship was ready to set off. 

              Oikawa waited until Watari was back on the deck and they walked back to where the rest of the crew was crowded around Iwaizumi and a table.

              “Come on captain, when you gunna let us find out where these greenies sit with the rest of us?”  Oikawa walked up just in time to hear Hanamaki whine as he draped himself over the table Iwaizumi was looking at.  Iwaizumi pushed him off the table to reveal he was looking at a roughly sketched map of the area around the city on the planet.  While he was gone, Iwaizumi must have had the crew scouting and mapping out the area.

              “I’m not talking about this until we are off this planet,” Iwaizumi grumbled before waving Matsukawa closer and motioning Oikawa and Yahaba through the ring of people to look at the map.

              “My crew does good work; is there anything else I need to know about the surrounding area before we get on with this?  You said to go north-east.  That would put us going right through this patch of rough mountains, so we’ll start going back towards the city then circle around until we have the height and power to break orbit.”  Oikawa watched as Iwaizumi drew their path before heading north-east.  Yahaba nodded his assent before Iwaizumi nodded and rolled up the map and cleared the table.  “Matsukawa, get the engines going, its time to get out of this swamp.”

              Oikawa took a deep breath to slow his thoughts and made eye contact with Yahaba.  He could see his emotions mirrored in his friend’s eyes.  Both of them broke into a smile neither of them could control. 

              The rest of the crew scattered to do their work, but they stayed with Iwaizumi to await instructions.

              “You listen to me real good right now… I’m taking a real risk listening to your idea of getting out of here.  But you need to put your pride aside and tell me if something changes.  You won’t get this yet but sailing requires a certain touch.  I know how to sail - you are some prophesied map and you’ve managed to live in this hole for years.  If something don’t feel right, you _tell me_ right then and we’ll figure out what to do from there.”  Iwaizumi looked right in Oikawa’s eyes as he spoke.  His air demanded Oikawa listen and trust him like he was trusting Oikawa.  Oikawa nodded solemnly.  Iwaizumi clapped him on the back and turned to face the deck.  “Let’s get it going!  We want to get moving before the crows come and get our nuts!”  There was a resounding cheer from the crew before the ship hummed to life. 

              The wood beneath Oikawa’s boots vibrated and creaked as the sails puffed under an artificial wind.  Not only did the sails move on their own, they emitted a soft yellow light.  Oikawa looked around as the ship and the surrounding area was gently illuminated.  Oikawa gasped as he was able to see a wide berth of uncultivated land that he had never been able to see before.  The ground was a depressed, muddy brown.  Oikawa suddenly lurched toward the railing as the ship pitched backward and everyone was thrown off their feet.  There was an painful sound of the wood of the ship scraping and crunching the ground beneath it.

              “GET IT TOGETHER MATSUKAWA YOU’RE WORSE THAN A GREENIE!”  Oikawa heard Hanamaki heckle from the crow’s nest.  Oikawa looked over to the lower deck to see Matsukawa quickly running a rope through a pulley.

              “IT’S NOT MY FAULT YOU DIDN’T DO THE COUNTERBALANCING RIGHT!” Matsukawa’s rebuke was drowned out by Hanamaki’s raucous laughter.  The laughter only picked up when both Oikawa and Iwaizumi shot Hanamaki glares.

              “Cap, Oikawa is giving you a run for your money with that look he just gave Maki!”  Someone on deck yelled but quickly shut up when Iwaizumi’s glare was directed at him.

              “Sounds like they want me to be the new captain, Captain,” Oikawa draped his arm around Iwaizumi’s shoulders.  His blood ran cold then hot as Iwaizumi raised his eyebrows and looked Oikawa up and down.

              “What, don’t like a little competition?”  Oikawa couldn’t keep the smile off his face.

              “You’re getting a little too comfortable to be leaning on me like this.”  Oikawa could see Iwaizumi struggling to fight back a smile.

              “Oh, you don’t like physical contact?  I couldn’t tell from how you couldn’t keep your hands off me earlier!”

               Iwaizumi’s face darkened, he chuckled before knocking Oikawa’s arm off and walking away.  “You’ll learn what it means to be in this crew pretty soon,” was casually thrown over his shoulder as he walked back to the helm.  His voice bellowed through the ship, “Let’s get it MOVING, Matsukawa!  I don’t want to lose another day because you give us all whiplash!”  There was a general shout of assent from the bottom deck before the ship hummed back to life and Oikawa couldn’t contain his laughter as the ship _gently_ lifted off the ground.  Oikawa pulled his necklace off before running to the railing and dangling it off the end to light up the side of the ship.  The light barely reached to the ground but paired with the light emanating from the sails, Oikawa could see the area of darkness under the ship.  His smile stretched from ear to ear as he turned around to face Iwaizumi and Yahaba.  He saw his smile spread to both of their faces before Iwaizumi turned to the helm to steer the swaying ship.  He pulled a lever and the ship responded by slowly ascending back towards the city.  Oikawa watched with fascination as Iwaizumi maneuvered the ship until it was facing away from the mountain range.  They must’ve been lucky to avoid hitting that peak when they broke through the atmosphere.

               Finally, Iwaizumi was happy with the angle and height of the ship.  He pulled the lever once again and the ship smoothly transitioned to moving forward.  Oikawa sighed with relief as the wind swept away the sweat that was sitting on his skin and in his clothes.  He laughed as it buffeted through his hair and blew tears out of his eyes.  He blinked against the wind as the ship picked up speed, yet he could not stop smiling.  He felt invigorated, renewed as if life was being pushed into him!  His hairs raised on end as they grew higher and higher until nothing of his surrounding was distinguishable from anything else.  Even with their lights, they were engulfed in cold blustering darkness.

               Oikawa looked up as someone called his name and saw a small lamp had been lit up in the crow’s nest.  Hanamaki was waving down to him and motioning for him to climb up to him.  He shot a look over to Iwaizumi to see him nod his agreement.  Oikawa couldn’t contain himself as he scaled the shrouds.  He made it about half way up before he paused…  He closed his eyes as he leaned away from the ropes, with one hand keeping him anchored.   With the wind buzzing in his ears and shivers running up his spine he let himself feel the gravity of all that was happening.  HE WAS ON A FLYING SHIP! 

               He gasped as he opened his eyes and turned his face into the crisp breeze.  Tears streamed down his face as his cheeks grew sore from smiling.  But none of that mattered right now.  Oikawa took a deep breath as he turned to face the rope ladder once again.  He climbed the last bit of rope before he clambered into the highest part of the ship with Hanamaki.

               “Glad to see you made it,” Hanamaki clapped him on the back before leaning against the railing.

               “Did you need something from me?”  Oikawa was shocked by how much the nest rocked with the wind, he held on tightly to the railing, trying to fight for his balance.

               “Didn’t need nothin’, just wanted to see how you would handle the climb,” Hanamaki replied before scanning Oikawa up and down.  “Relax mate, don’t fight it - move with the ship.” 

               Oikawa shot Hanamaki a bewildered look as the man released his hold on the railing and moved to the center of the platform.  He motioned Oikawa closer before grabbing hold of both his arms.  He held their arms up, holding each other’s elbows.  He widened his stance and Oikawa followed his lead, slowly bending his knees until he could feel the push and pull of the mast in his hips rather than in his back.  Oikawa exhaled sharply as he slowly matched the shift of his center of gravity to the sway of the ship.  Before it felt like sharp, stuttering, random motions, but now he felt them as they truly were, rhythmic pulses, that he could anticipate and after a while he no longer had to think about it until he could stand up a little straighter and even managed to move around while maintaining himself.

               “You catch on pretty fast!  I was up here for _days_ with Kindaichi when he first got on the ship.  The movement of the ship is strongest up here, so if you can move around up here, you can manage down below no matter the turbulence.”  Oikawa was infinitely grateful to the red-head.  However, before he could express his gratitude, his skin went cold and he got light-headed.  “Woah, woah, grab the railing!”

But the railing was too far.  He reached out to Hanamaki, who caught him around the waist before he collapsed.

               “We are close.”

               Oikawa managed a few deep breaths before it felt like he was being crushed by a building.  A ringing like he had never heard before pierced his ears.  He and Hanamaki collapsed to their knees on the small platform.  The ship felt like it was spinning on its head - caught in a whirlwind of pure chaos.  The pain felt like it was never ending; everything hurt, it hurt breathing, it hurt how tightly he was closing his eyes, he was sure his eardrums would burst, his knees hurt where he knelt on the rough wood. 

                Just as Oikawa thought he couldn’t bear any more, it was gone - like it had never been there at all.  Oikawa flopped onto his back.  His breathing was ragged.  Even though the pressure was gone, Oikawa’s body still felt the pain.  His head was still spinning and he thought he might lose his breakfast.  He groaned as he laid on his back with his hand over his face.

                He slowly cracked open an eye to peak through his fingers.

                He couldn’t believe his eyes. 

                For the first time in his life, when he opened his eyes, he was not met with a filling darkness.  Instead, as his eyes fully opened, he was met with his entire field of vision covered in specs of light.  His entire body was electrified, his hair stood on end, his breath stopped, his eyes shifted in and out of focus as he tried to look past the tears streaming down the sides of his face.  He couldn’t keep his eyes still to look at one thing long enough, there was more to look at in one inch of his sight than he could ever look at in a whole year.  His breath came back to him as he gasped and stuttered a laugh.  He looked over to see Hanamaki in a similar position to him but his hands were still covering his face.  Oikawa leaned onto his elbows before shaking his crewmate’s shoulder.

                 Hanamaki groaned and tried to push Oikawa’s hand away.  However, when Oikawa wouldn’t be ignored Hanamaki opened his eyes to tell him off.  They widened comically before he whipped his head around to take everything in.  He turned back to Oikawa with a smile covering his face.  He clapped him on the shoulder before tears threatened to roll over his cheeks.

                 Hanamaki rolled onto his stomach before standing up and helping Oikawa to his feet as well.  The movement of the main mast had calmed down to a gentle roll now, and Oikawa could barely perceive a breeze.  He couldn’t tell if they were still moving anymore.  It was like their ship was completely isolated and alone in the darkness of space.  It was weird.  If Oikawa just scanned around the ship, it looked completely dark, but as he slowed down, everything lit up. 

                 Hanamaki moved around the still stunned Oikawa and moved to climb down the shrouds.  Oikawa, at a complete loss, just stayed standing, looking out at the universe.

                 Nothing could have prepared him for this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all thank you so much for coming back and reading more ;-;  
> Second, I made it through my exams for now, so thank you for your patience!  
> Thirdly, do yall prefer shorter chapters, like this length with more frequent updates or longer chapters with longer time in between chapters? Let me know down in the comments.  
> I love you al thank you for your support!  
> <3 Sky  
> P.S - It is an absolute crime I had an exam on Iwaoi day and couldn't put any content out! I'm gunna fight!


	4. Chapter 4

         Oikawa was caught in a paradox as he stood looking out into space.  He knew that around each of those points of light there was life.  Space was just teeming with life; everywhere you looked there was an infinite amount of life all around you!  And yet.  It still felt so alone.  But this aloneness felt… different from what he knew on his home planet.  There, the feeling of isolation and abandonment was tangible.  It wasn’t something you could ever escape from.  Here, it just felt like you were so overwhelmed by the presence of life, that in relation, the emptiness of space was a vacuum.

         The gases out in the open collided with the atmosphere of the ship and refracted into a swarm of colors.  Oikawa couldn’t keep his eyes still, trying to take it all in.  He only forced himself to stop once he started getting dizzy.  If he looked out past the ship, there was no telling what was up and what was down.  Left, right, right-side up, upside down, none of that mattered.  Oikawa’s breathing finally slowed down as his eyes relaxed and allowed him to see a wide swath of the sky.  It brought every thought to his mind!  He had so many questions, so much to know and learn, and yet it was as if the sky was telling him to wait; to just sit and rest under the light.  The emptiness of space provoked thought while still demanding silence.  It was all he could do to just try to appreciate it, it left no room for anything else.

         A shiver ran down Oikawa’s spine as a cold breeze slipped through him.  He looked over the edge of the crow’s nest to see Hanamaki had made it down and was slowly rousing the other members of the crew.  A cheer was slowly growing as the crew came to their senses after the violence of their reentry into the realm of the light.  Oikawa soon realized that for them, this was as much as a saving grace as it was for him.  They had all thought themselves doomed to take on the life of Oikawa and his people.

         Oikawa slowly made his way down the shrouds; he was still unable to break his gaze from the stars around him.  A smile was permanently plastered on his face.  He found Yahaba leaning against the railing on the upper deck.  He bounded up to him and embraced his brother in a deep hug.  The two of them stood there, crying together as they looked out at all the potential in the universe.

         Someone cleared their throat behind them.  Oikawa looked over his shoulder, his arm still draped around Yahaba.  Iwaizumi was standing behind them, a smile stretching across his face as well.  He nodded head for them to follow him before walking to the lower deck and into the quarters.  The two followed slowly, still enraptured with the sky.  At one point, Yahaba had to physically pull Oikawa into the hallway – cutting off his view of the stars. 

         He huffed before following Iwaizumi intently.  He led them to a different room than they had seen before.  He pulled the door open, revealing a large room covered in papers and books with a few boxes scattered around.  He held the door open for them and shut it securely behind them.  The room was lit by a few small lights scattered around the room.

         “So, tell me.  How did you know?”  He leaned against the table that was impeccably well kept.  “It has to have something to do with that map on your skin, right?”  His eyes were boring holes into Oikawa.  It was clear to both the men that Iwaizumi was dying to ask him to strip down right then and there, but managed to contain himself.

         Oikawa moved further into the room, looking around with his arms behind his back.  The room had maps absolutely _everywhere_!  Oikawa couldn’t even read some of them.  He heard Yahaba talking to Iwaizumi but didn’t bother to list to what was being said.  He just walked around the room looking at the maps pinned to the walls.  These maps were engrossing.  They were of varying ages and all of different places.  Oikawa noticed something odd and when he investigated, he saw that an older map had been covered by a newer version of the same area.  When he looked closer, he could see this happened with almost every map that was visible on the wall; underneath it was multiple older versions of the same plot; each one getting more and more detailed.

         After looking at each map up close, he stepped back to look at the big picture.  He scowled at the papers before he could see it.  The maps were not haphazardly thrown up on the wall.  No.  No, they were put together in just a way that they formed a cohesive map.  He turned around, ready to question the captain, but stopped short when he saw both Yahaba and Iwaizumi were looking at him expectantly.  He never quite understood the old phrase, “A deer caught in headlights,” before right this moment.

         He looked at Yahaba, hoping the man would help him out.  Yahaba only smirked before mirthfully shrugging his shoulders.  Oikawa shot him a glare, but then Iwaizumi spoke up.

         “Well?  Can I see it?  The map.”  Oikawa smiled brightly at Iwaizumi before walking over.  He pulled a stool out for him to sit on before he tugged his shirt up and over his head.

         “Here.”  He waved Iwaizumi around him while he pointed to the spot on his ribs where Yahaba had guessed on their location.  Just as Iwaizumi had walked around him, Yahaba gasped from across the room.

         “Its changed,” was all he said as both heads whipped around to face him.

         “What do you mean its changed?!”  Oikawa whipped around to try to look at his own back.  Iwaizumi moved to the side as Yahaba strode forward.  He pushed Oikawa so he was facing forwards.  Oikawa obeyed and stayed put.  He felt Yahaba’s warm hands skimming the lines across his back, but more so he felt the weight of Iwaizumi’s gaze watching Yahaba’s every move.  Yahaba kept one finger on the spot where Oikawa knew the black hole was and his other hand was wandering aimlessly around the area around it.

         “I’m sure of it.  This is completely different.  I’ve never seen any of these markings before.”  He stood up, his hands dropping off Oikawa’s back.

         Oikawa turned around so fast he almost slammed his head into Iwaizumi’s as he knelt down behind Oikawa.  Once he regained himself, he asked, “Do you have a mirror?”  Iwaizumi shook his head.

         “There should be one in the common room,” he turned to Yahaba, “Watari can get it for you if you can flag him down.”  Yahaba looked at Oikawa, who nodded, before he left them alone in the room.  There was a rustling behind Oikawa as Iwaizumi stood up and moved in front of him.  He couldn’t quite meet Oikawa’s eyes, instead looking over his shoulder at all the maps on the walls.  His eyebrows knit together as his eyes scanned along the maps.

         “Have you seen anything like this?”  Oikawa asked quietly.

         “I hate to admit I haven’t.  But I haven’t.  Can you explain this to me again?”  His eyes finally met Oikawa’s as he sighed in defeat.  Oikawa patted the ground behind him.  Iwaizumi obediently sat down where he was told.

         Oikawa twisted his arm around so he could point at the spot on his ribs where Yahaba first noticed the disconnect.  “See how these two lines don’t meet?  Theres that weird blank space in between it.  I didn’t see it on your map, but that was one of our ancient constellations ‘Elcid.’  Yahaba first noticed that the lines didn’t meet up until I did this –“ Oikawa twisted around to look at Iwaizumi over his shoulder.

         “The lines meet up.”  Iwaizumi said under his breath, his eyes glued to Oikawa’s back.

         “So, we just followed the crease of my back, and it led us here.”  Just then Yahaba knocked before bursting into the room with a small mirror tucked under his arm.  “Is that the largest mirror you have?”  Oikawa looked up at Iwaizumi.

         “Yea, we never really had a need for a big one.”  He scratched the back of his neck.  Yahaba propped it up on the desk as Oikawa stood and tried to position himself so he could see the right portion of his back in the mirror.  It took some work, but he was finally able to see the area to the right of the crease in his back.  He squinted, trying to hold in his complaints about the mirror and just work with it.  Optimally, he would have a room full of mirrors so he could look at every part of himself without the fear of seeing something incorrectly. 

         Thankfully, that wouldn’t be needed for this; because for the first time in his life, there was something completely new on his skin.  He had seen and memorized each and every mark on his skin, but this was new, alien, and _exciting_.  His face hurt from the pull of his smile on his cheeks as he turned to look at Iwaizumi.

         “It really changed!  But only in the direction we exited the black hole!  Do you know where we are?  Do you have any maps?”  Oikawa was practically buzzing with excitement, and he could see it mirrored in Iwaizumi and Yahaba’s eyes.  Iwaizumi turned around to face his map.  He scanned for a while before pointing to a specific spot on the far-left edge.  Oikawa moved to stand next to the spot so the two could compare his skin to the maps on the wall.  He stood still as fingers dragged across his skin and the paper next to him.

         “It’s undeniably the same area… It looks different though, and yet everything still maps out correctly.”  Iwaizumi was starry-eyed.  He held eye contact with Oikawa, “You really do have a _map_ on your skin.”  He backed up, and sat down on the desk.  “You really have a map that _changes_ based on where you are…”  He sounded like he couldn’t even believe it as he said it.  Oikawa was in shock for a whole other reason.  For his whole life, he had thought that what was on his skin was all there was; countless marks, paths, stars, more than all the maps that his people had; and there was _more_?

         Oikawa’s whole understanding of the universe was crumbling around him.  He had been in a black hole, and escaped with the hopes of following the map on his skin to the prophesied place where he could save his people.  But now there was no guarantee that he could find that place with what was on his skin right now… 

         How long would it take before they could even find a lead on where to start?

         “I hate to break this moment but… How did we get here?”  Yahaba asked, standing behind Oikawa.  “What was on your skin in that area was a partial match to one of our maps of the area neighboring our planet before it was swallowed.  But nothing on Iwaizumi’s maps is familiar.  Where are we and how did we get here?”  Oikawa’s smile faltered.  He turned to face Iwaizumi.

         “Well…  There really isn’t a lot of information about what happens when you leave a black hole because it never happens…  The only thing that comes to mind is an old sailors’ tale about the Birds’.  It was said that they could teleport from one star-system to a completely different one.”

         “So, you’re telling me the most information we have right now is a prophecy, a magic map, and a sailor’s tale?”  Oikawa quipped.  “I’ve worked with a lot less!”  His smile regained its full strength.

         Iwaizumi obviously wasn’t expecting that reply.  He rolled his eyes before replying, “Hanamaki and Matsukawa will remember more of the tale than I can, we can go find them and see what they have to add.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello you amazing people! I am so sorry for the long delay, exams have been kicking my butt! But I only have two days left until summer and I am free to write to my hearts content! Thank you for your patience and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!  
> Im gunna put links to my social media so you can find me and tell if I'm still alive or not lol I'm not super active but please come bother me with talking about this or any story!!  
> Tumblr : https://the-idealess-blogger.tumblr.com/  
> Twitter : https://twitter.com/SkyClimber14  
> As always thank you so much for your support and comments they mean the word to me!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let my chaotic Children be chaotic!

              The trio walked out of the office, only to hesitate at the exit of the hall at the sound of raucous laughter and singing coming from the main deck.  As Iwaizumi lifted his hand to open the door, Oikawa noticed his hand kept missing the handle as the floor was shuddering rhythmically and the door shook to the beat from the other side.  Iwaizumi shook his head before grasping the handle and swinging the door open.  Oikawa and Yahaba glanced at each other, having not a clue about what would be waiting for them on the other side.

              The deck was in complete chaos.  The duo was immediately swept up into the loud, vibrant, atmosphere.

              Kindaichi and Kunimi were dancing around a keg, of what Oikawa could only assume to be ale, both with a pint in each hand.  Kyotani had set up a series of boxes in the center of the deck and was sitting there yelling at Kindaichi to arm wrestle him.  Hanamaki and Matsukawa were front and center.  Hanamaki was banging a rhythm on the box under him while Matsukawa strummed away on a guitar.  The duo sang in harmony as Watari sat slumped in between two barrels drinking from his pint and slurring along to the words of the song.

              Everyone spun around to look at the three men standing in the doorway before quickly resuming with increased fervor and pulling them into the trance.  All of them were quickly handed a pint while Yahaba was pushed down across from Kyotani who held his arm up in a challenging manner.

              Oikawa took a sip of his ale before watching Yahaba smile before taking Kyotani’s hand, slamming it against the rough wood of the box without hesitation.  The crew erupted in cheers and moved to surround the table as Hanamaki and Matsukawa took up a new beat, spiking everyone’s excitement as Watari sat down across from the newcomer.  Yahaba made quick work of him as well.  Before the crew knew what had hit them the silver-haired man had made his way through half their ranks. 

              Oikawa had joined in on the growing cheers and calls for his brother as Matsukawa put down his guitar and took his position.  Both of them took deep draws from their drinks before linking arms.  Matsukawa was the first who put up a solid fight against Yahaba.  The men strained for a while before Matsukawa sneezed and threw his weight against Yahaba’s arm and slammed it against the wood.  The deck erupted in a cheer.  Yahaba wore a smile even as he gave the black-haired man the side eye.  He only got a sly shrug in return.

              Oikawa choked on his drink as he was slapped on the back and pushed into the chair Yahaba had previously held.  Kyotani all but pushed Matsukawa out of his seat to challenge Oikawa.  Oikawa, who was still feeling his eyes rolling around in their sockets from the weight of the slap on his back, less than gracefully took the younger man’s hand before slamming it onto the box without mercy.  He shook his sight back into place before smirking at the look the young sea-man was giving him.  He breezed through the same order of people that Yahaba had faced until Matsukawa was stretching in the seat across from him.  The man cracked his own neck before placing his elbow on the wood.  The heckling and calls from the tight group was mixing with the ale until Oikawa’s blood was singing.  The two locked arms.  Once the call was raised, Oikawa didn’t even give Matsukawa a chance.  He bobbed his head to the tune Hanamaki was still holding, in an aloof manner.  He saw Matsukawa raise and eyebrow at him before Oikawa went on the offensive.  He faced more resistance than he had with anyone else, but he still over-powered the man without so much as breaking a sweat.

              The roar that raised from the crew was deafening.  Oikawa was being clapped on the back and shaken around while Matsukawa was being laughed at.  The two shared a jovial smile while Matsukawa motioned that Oikawa should watch his back before clapping him on the shoulder and moving to get more ale.

              Hanamaki slid into the empty seat.  Oikawa had figured this was some type of hierarchy.  He was slightly surprised by the lithe man sitting just under Iwaizumi.  The red-head held himself in a self-confident way.  Oikawa figured, that after watching the means employed by Matsukawa that he should be on the watch with the mast-man.

              They linked hands and when Kindaichi went to check their hands, he paused and gave Hanamaki the side-eye.  Kindaichi pulled something out of his senior’s sleeve before knocking him on the head with it and throwing it over his shoulder.  Hanamaki looked betrayed at first before giving a Cheshire grin.  He looked at Oikawa and shrugged nonchalantly.  They rejoined.  Oikawa was tense trying to anticipate his opponent’s movements.  Hanamaki just maintained eye contact with that wicked grin.  Oikawa was not ready to give up his defensible position, but he slowly moved in to apply pressure against Hanamaki.  There was little resistance, but Oikawa was not about to give up his suspicions and leap right into a trap.  Instead, he did the complete opposite.  He backed off, as if he was tired, he saw the switch click in Hanamaki’s eyes.  They lit up and Oikawa could see he fell for the bait.  He felt him rush in, but quickly Oikawa caught him by the wrist, halting his forward push and tossed his arm back against the crate.  Hanamaki threw his up in the air, realizing he had played himself!

              The crew, which had been overwhelmingly on Oikawa’s side, immediately swung and he was on the other end.  The crew sang their captain’s praises as he eased into the chair across from Oikawa.  Oikawa stretched his arms up over his head and shook out his hands before extending his arm to Iwaizumi.  The man shook out his shoulders, which Oikawa was struggling to not be intimidated by.  Iwaizumi’s hand made Oikawa’s look small and slender by comparison.  He knew, however, that the callouses on his palms told a different story.  And each of the men he had previously faced, learned the hard way not to underestimate his hands.

              Their hands fit together and their elbows rested as anchors on the wooden deck of the crate.  If Oikawa didn’t know better, he would have thought that Iwaizumi was more aloof than Oikawa was fronting to be.  However, he could see the gears turning in his eyes.  Throughout the tourney Oikawa could feel the weight of Iwaizumi’s eyes burning into his back.  Oikawa’s heart rate was at an all-time high.  They both took one last swig of the ale.  Oikawa rested his chin on his other arm before wiggling their arms back and forth.  A positively ravishing smile set in on Iwaizumi’s face.  He stopped Oikawa’s antics with a firm squeeze of his arm.  As Oikawa tried to continue wiggling against him, he couldn’t budge the man’s arm.  He popped back up into proper posture and was set with a new determination.  Iwaizumi raised an eyebrow at his enthusiasm right before the call start was given.  Both men immediately began trying to advance, no dancing around it this time.  Oikawa was fighting valiantly but Iwaizumi was slowly but surely overwhelming him with sheer strength.  Oikawa only let out the breath he had been holding when the back of his hand hit the rough wood. 

              The crew was going absolutely mental.  They were cheering and puffing up their Captain who was looking at Oikawa with a smile on his face and in his eyes.  He clapped Oikawa on the shoulder and moved to refill his pint at the demand of the crew.

              Oikawa peeled himself off the wooden crate and moved to sit next to Matsukawa.  They cheered before emptying their glasses.  Oikawa’s head was floating around.  His eyes were still in focus but he knew he was wearing a goofy grin.

              “So, I hear you can tell me about the Birds’,” Oikawa said as he leaded further back.

              Matsukawa slurred as Iwaizumi approached.  “Yea but you ain’t earned that kin’a information yet!  One day on a ship don’t make ye worthy of a legend.”  He only laughed as Iwaizumi scoffed at him.

              “Just tell us what you know, Matsukawa,” Iwaizumi grumbled.

              “Nah, Captain, you know I can’t be doing the Birds’ dirty like that.”  Matsukawa waved his hand in front of his face as if he was trying to wave Iwaizumi’s glare away.  “He’s gotta earn it.”

              “Oh, as if you wouldn’t have started singing their tales if they hadn’t walked through that door when they did!”  Hanamaki called from across the deck.

              “Aye, that may be true, but list’n here, he’s barely been here a day!”  Matsukawa grew more and more determined the more he argued.

              “So, you don’t accept me in your crew?”  Oikawa asked quietly.

              “Jus cuz you can beat me in arm wrestling, don’t mean you’s one of us.  Hell, you couldn’t even beat the captain.” Matsukawa scowled into his empty pint.  Oikawa gave him the rest of his own.

              “So, if I were to beat your captain in a true wrestle, you’d accept me?”  Iwaizumi’s eyebrows shot up as he heard the challenge.  Oikawa could see Yahaba across the deck trying to tell him to back off, but he ignored him.  Oikawa still had the ale and the cheers of his victories pushing him brazenly forward.  He got to his feet and stretched to his full height in order to look down on Iwaizumi.  There was a scuffle off to their right and both of them looked to see Kyotani sprawled on his back with Yahaba kneeling over him.  Both men immediately knew that the blonde had tried to charge Oikawa.  However, Oikawa could see the surprise in Iwaizumi’s eyes that Kyotani had been taken down so smoothly by the other man.  He turned to Oikawa with a new look in his eyes.

              “If you’re gunna be in my crew, I gotta know how you can stand on your own.”  Iwaizumi set down his mug and the rest of the crew cleared out and set up the perimeter of the court.

              “No dirty business,” Watari called from where he was further slumped against the barrels.

              Oikawa and Iwaizumi slowly circled each other.  The world had a fuzz around the edges from the drink.  But Oikawa felt limber and loose on his feet.  Whether or not that would be a good thing, they were about to find out.

               Their movements were smooth, neither shaking under the influence.  Iwaizumi seemed content to let Oikawa make the first move as the challenger.  Oikawa accepted.  He slowly advanced until he got to the point where Iwaizumi was beginning to tense up.  Oikawa watched the man’s stance, he paid attention to the position of this limbs and the way he held himself.  Testing the waters, Oikawa lunged at Iwaizumi.  The broad man moved to grab at Oikawa’s collar.  Oikawa ducked out of the way, sending Iwaizumi’s fingers over the top of his hair.  He felt him try to grab on here, but his ghostly hair slid right through his fingers.  Oikawa came up from his duck so that his left arm trapped Iwaizumi’s still-outstretched arm between his bicep and his neck.  He grabbed the cloth on Iwaizumi’s opposite shoulder and held tight before he pulled back on the shirt and swept Iwaizumi’s legs.  Iwaizumi fell backwards, but was spun around under the force of Oikawa’s pull.  He landed with the air knocked out of his chest and his left arm pinned behind his back, with Oikawa kneeling over him.

               The deck was completely silent.  Oikawa was breathing heavily; he hadn’t planned on Iwaizumi going down like _that_.  And yet, here he was, sitting across the back of the man.  Oikawa held his thick arm against his back as Iwaizumi tried to throw him off to no avail.  Oikawa held perfectly still until he felt Iwaizumi tap on his leg.

               Oikawa let out the breath he had been holding and he felt Iwaizumi do the same.  Oikawa slowly eased off the man and moved to help him up.  Iwaizumi looked Oikawa dead in the eye, and Oikawa almost shrank back.  Was he supposed to throw the match?  Before Iwaizumi broke out laughing and clapped Oikawa on the shoulder.  With that the deck fell into complete pandemonium.  Oikawa turned to see money was being passed around along with one more round of ale.

              “That’s enough ale for the lot of you!  I think you’ve had enough entertainment for one night too!”  Iwaizumi turned on the crew.  His voice firm but a smile on his face taking off the bite of his statement.  His shirt was in disarray, but he didn’t seem to care.  Even though Oikawa was caught up in the moment, he wasn’t too far gone to not notice the wide planes of Iwaizumi’s chest that had been revealed when he tugged on his shirt.   His skin was radiant in the light cast by the sails, it ebbed and flowed seamlessly, pulled smooth against well worked muscles.  Iwaizumi massaged his shoulder before sitting down next to Oikawa who had plopped down next to Matsukawa, who was in shock.

              “That’s one hell of an initiation,” Oikawa muttered, taking another drink. 

              “You better tell us the damn legend now, Matsu.  Or I’ll make you fight him next,” Iwaizumi grumbled, still babying his shoulder.

              “Fine, fine, I’ll tell you.”  Matsukawa smiled, knowing he had been beaten far worse than Iwaizumi.

              Hanamaki slumped down next to Matsukawa.  “Well, o’course you would wanna know!  We just did the impossible!  Something people thought only the Birds’ could manage.”  He cheered to himself.

              “Something only the Birds’ could manage?”  Yahaba sat across from Oikawa.  Slowly but surely, the rest of the crew came in and sat down in the tight circle.

              “Getting out of a black hole,” Matsukawa finished for Hanamaki.  “It was said that in more cases than one, the Birds’ were cornered by the local military, commanded to give over all their goods.  An’ ‘stead of givin’ up, they would turn tail and split into a black hole.  Naturally, people thought they were as good as dead, so they’d just take their losses.  That is, until the Birds’ were spotted alive and well, two systems over.”

              Oikawa’s jaw dropped as he looked over at Iwaizumi.  His face was solid, but his eyes were gleaming.  He nodded at Oikawa before Matsukawa and Hanamaki dove into the full legend of the Birds’.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I know it was light on actual plot but I had so much fun writing this. The next chapters will really start ramping it up, I promise! Thank you again for your patience and coming back to read with me ; - ; your kind comments really keep me going!


	6. Chapter 6

Oikawa was worried he wouldn’t be able to fall asleep; his mind was racing with the tale of the Birds’.  Whether it was the stress of the day, or an effect of the alcohol, Oikawa wasn’t sure, but the second his head hit the pillow, he was out.

His dreams were full of vibrant darkness.  He could feel its breath on his skin, feel the push and pull of its heartbeat.  His head swam under the intoxicating warmth.  It almost made him bitter towards the darkness of his home.  There, it was stale and cold.  Detached.  Who knew darkness could have such depth and invitation?  The darkness wove through Oikawa; its’ breath became his breath.  His consciousness expanded.  He saw what the darkness saw, felt what it felt.  He knew the history of the cosmos, every rise and fall of civilizations and of stars.  It was all just in the blink of an eye for darkness.  Light came and went.  Species born of light sometimes living past their creator, but species born of darkness lived for eons, nestled somewhere deep and quiet, yet flourishing.  The creatures of the light may shine brighter and overpower the Darklings momentarily, but they always come back.  Eternal.

_Darkness knows itself, for it is always connected.  The light, which is always shattered and refracted, what can it know?_

* * *

 

Oikawa eased awake, like the lazy brush of waves on a shore.  He rolled over, his dreams still bouncing around his head.

_Who was that voice he heard?_

He stretched the kinks out of his back, the memories of last night slowly replaying in his mind.  He smiled to himself at the sense of comradery he felt with the crew after last night.  He got off the small bed and moved around the dark room to the chest with their small amount of possessions.  He changed out his clothes before looking at Yahaba, who was still sleeping on his bed.  Oikawa smiled at him, still hearing his cheers of victory from last night and still felt the weight of Yahaba’s arm slung over his shoulder. 

But there was still an uncomfortable weight in his mind of his dreams last night.  His skin felt tingly and itchy.  He moved around in discomfort.  Oikawa closed the door quietly after him.  The ship was still, save for the hum of the engine.  Oikawa moved into Iwaizumi’s office, trying to get to the mirror they left there.  The office was quiet, but when Oikawa turned, he saw Iwaizumi asleep on the desk.  Oikawa sucked in a breath; Iwaizumi stirred.  He looked up at Oikawa with bleary eyes.  He raised an eyebrow, resting his head against his palm.

“What do you need?”  His voice was deep and rough with sleep.

Oikawa hummed before saying, “I wanted to look in the mirror.  I feel.  Odd.”  He didn’t say too much, worried to sound like a mad man after his dream.  His comment peeked Iwaizumi’s interest regardless.  He straightened up in his chair and nodded towards the mirror, still propped against the wall.  He stayed sitting where he was while Oikawa approached the mirror and took his shirt off.  When he looked in the mirror, Oikawa saw his skin was red and irritated all over.  Iwaizumi stood up from his chair and approached Oikawa, a worried look on his face.  Iwaizumi reached out to gently touch Oikawa’s shoulder.  The second his skin made contact it felt like lightning passed from Oikawa into Iwaizumi.  They both leapt back and stared at each other.  Iwaizumi’s eyebrows were high, before they slowly lowered in thought.  Oikawa held still as Iwaizumi circled around him at arms-length.  Oikawa could see the gears turning in Iwaizumi’s eyes but he didn’t know what he could be thinking about.  Panic was rising in Oikawa’s throat.  Between this weird feeling and the dreams, Oikawa’s anxiety was building.  He wanted nothing more than to ask his councilors for guidance and to have their wisdom.

Iwaizumi took a step closer before reaching to touch Oikawa once again.  When they touched, Oikawa jumped away again.  He caught his balance on the wall of maps.  There was suddenly a sharp pain on his right calf.  Oikawa gasped and pulled up his pant leg.  There was no mark where the pain had been, nothing to indicate why it felt like a pin had been stuck into his leg.  He shot Iwaizumi a look of confusion.  Everything was crashing down around Oikawa, it felt like it was too much all at once.

His breath came in short bursts.  His hand slammed back onto the wall and the feeling renewed itself in his leg.  The pain cut through his mind.  He froze.  It startled him, but when Oikawa took his hand off of the wall, the feeling in his leg went away.  When he put his hand back on, the spot on his leg returned.  Oikawa looked at Iwaizumi but the man was just looking at him in complete befuddlement. 

Oikawa looked closely at the spot where his hand was on the map.  He then kept his hand there and moved his focus to the spot on his leg.  He knelt down when he found the right spot.  His eyes were wide as he saw that the map on his leg matched the map on the wall.  When he looked up at Iwaizumi again, he saw that the man was already examining the two pieces of the map.

“Did…. Did you feel something when you touched the map?”  He sounded like he was in shock.

“Yea,” Oikawa breathed.  He was so confused.  He had touched countless maps before, just last night he was touching these very same maps with Iwaizumi and Yahaba.  What had changed now?  Oikawa’s mind immediately jumped back to his dream last night.

_Darkness knows itself._

“Hey.  Hey, come back to me,” Iwaizumi was waving his hand in front of Oikawa’s face.  Oikawa swayed back and forth with his hand on his forehead.

“I – I just don’t know what’s real and what’s not…”  His vision was swimming.  He felt Iwaizumi steady him.  He felt his breath coming in short bursts, the air around him was hot, it felt like it was burning his throat with each pull of air into his lungs.  His head was pounding, his blood was boiling under his skin.  The air in this room was stifling.  He started trying to move for the door.  Iwaizumi caught on to his effort and carried him out of the room.  By the time they made it to the end of the hall, Iwaizumi was practically dragging the tall man beside him.  The man burst through the door with little care for it.  Oikawa flopped on the deck, wheezing.  Iwaizumi looked around frantically for Watari, who should be on watch.  He called the smaller man over to them before kneeling down by Oikawa.  Oikawa, finally feeling the effects of open air, struggled to take in deeper breaths.  He reached out, grasping for Iwaizumi.  He caught hold of Iwaizumi’s necklace.  The small, cold piece of metal sang in his hand.  Air was forced into Oikawa’s lungs all at once when images danced around his vision. 

The star-scape vanished.  His mind was filled with images of a dark room with the walls covered from floor to ceiling with shelves that were _packed_ with objects.  His eyebrows knit together as he tried to look around.  He felt like he couldn’t move, he was stuck seeing only what he was allowed to see.  The space was calm, quiet.  It gave him a sense of peace.  He felt his heartrate lower, the electricity in his skin faded away.  Then, he felt a cool breeze blow over his skin.  He felt the wooden deck below his back.  Finally, he heard the call of the crew around him.  He felt himself slowly release his grip on the medallion.

As his hand fell away, his vision returned to the ship, to his crewmates.  They were all huddled around him.  His eyes immediately met Yahaba’s who looked like he was ready to either burst into tears or to beat the pulp out of Oikawa.  Maybe both.  He slowly panned back over to Iwaizumi, who was holding his necklace in his own hand now with a concerned look on his face.

Oikawa took in a deep breath before exhaling and moving to sit up.  “What in the darkness just happened?”  He held his head in his hands.

“We should be asking you that!”  Iwaizumi snapped, softly, at him.

“I… Feel like I’ve been in a fever dream.”  His voice stuttered.  “I don’t know what’s real and what’s in my head.”  He thought about how much he should tell of what had happened to him.  But he figured he couldn’t do anything with it on his own.  “I had this dream.  And I woke up feeling like my skin was crawling.  When I found Iwaizumi and I touched the map, I felt it.  I felt my own touch on my leg, and when I looked, it was the same map.”  The crew looked completely lost at his words.  But then there was a shift in their attention.  He was still shirtless.   There were gasps and murmuring as they saw the pale blue marks on his skin.  Iwaizumi shushed them and looked at Oikawa to continue.  “I felt like I was going to go up in flame!  I – Iwaizumi brought me out here and I grabbed his necklace and I saw a room!  A room full of things, it was dark, and dusty, but it was packed with trinkets and boxes.”

The image still danced around Oikawa's head, but it was slowly fading. The crew was looking around at each other but Oikawa noticed Iwaizumi, Matsukawa and Hanamaki were all looking at each other with wide eyes. They shared a nod before Iwaizumi clapped Oikawa on the shoulder. He helped him stand up before checking to make sure he was alright.

When they were sure he wouldn't collapse again, Iwaizumi set the crew into motion before leading Oikawa, Yahaba, Hanamaki and Matsukawa back into his office. Iwaizumi took a deep breath before he sat down heavily in his chair.

"You're telling me when you touched the map you felt that you had the same spot on your leg?" Oikawa nodded. Everyone in the room exhaled deeply with the implications of that.  “And when you held my necklace you saw something? A room?" Oikawa nodded again.  Iwaizumi shared a look with his two senior crew members.  "Come here," he led Oikawa back to the wall of maps.  He pointed to a spot and motioned for Oikawa to touch it. Oikawa hesitated, not wanting to willingly walk into pain, but he shrugged it off and pressed his finger to the spot. He felt a twitch on his right shoulder. He looked down to see his skin and back at the map. It was indeed the same. He turned to show the rest of the men that it did match.

There was a gasp from the two senior crewmen who hadn't seen Oikawa's map before. Iwaizumi chuckled with Oikawa and Yahaba at their shock before Matsukawa passed Oikawa something. Oikawa's vision was suddenly taken over by a small storage room. It was cramped, with boxes everywhere. But what caught Oikawa's eye was a tapestry on the opposite wall with a black bird woven into it. The object was taken out of his hand and his vision returned to the office. He felt lightheaded but other than that, unaffected. The men were all staring at him expectantly.

"It was a small storage room. It was full of stuff. Overflowing really. There was this tapestry.... It had a bird on it. I've never seen that kind of thing before," the jaws on all three of the sailors dropped.

"You. You really saw all that?" Hanamaki questioned. Oikawa turned to him nodding. His eyes lit up in excitement. "First, we make it out of a black hole, and now _this_?" Hanamaki was bouncing around the room. He high-fived Matsukawa.

Iwaizumi had a similar look in his eye but he seemed to be trying to hold it in. "One more thing," his deep voice caught the attention of all the men. He walked to his desk, pulled something out of his desk and walked back. It was a torn piece of fabric.  He handed it to Oikawa. The room was alight with suspense.

Oikawa took it, spun it around in his hands, switched hands.

Nothing. 

Iwaizumi hummed. He walked across the wall to another spot on the map. Oikawa followed. Iwaizumi pointed to a small sliver of a map. Oikawa put his palm against it.

Nothing.  His eyebrows shot up as he shook his head.

Iwaizumi hummed and nodded with him.

"So, you can only see things that are already linked to you through the map?" Yahaba finally spoke up.

Oikawa shrugged, "I guess so."

That seemed to deflate the room a bit before Matsukawa spoke up, "but he still saw something with the talisman. That means it's somewhere on his body, right?"  The others nodded.  "But how do we figure out where something is, based on him being able to see a room?"  He let out a loud sigh.

Yahaba snapped before Oikawa could, "What aren't you telling us?"

The three men turned to him at his attitude.

"This medallion is a small piece of a larger collection that was taken from the Birds' right before they disappeared into thin air."

“ _The_ Birds’?”  Yahaba asked.

“Ya,” was Iwaizumi’s soft reply.

None of this seemed real.  Oikawa’s head was spinning.  Every time he thought he was getting his feet under him with all that was going on, something new jumps out of the darkness.

“But, if he can see it, that means it has to be somewhere on his skin.  Didn’t you say that most of what you can see on him is nothing you’ve seen before?  Maybe that’s why you haven’t found it.”  Yahaba spoke up again.  His words of wisdom brought pride swelling up in Oikawa’s chest.

All the men stood around contemplating what could be their next move.  Matsukawa was the first to speak up, “Well, we can’t just go roaming around looking for a dark, musty closet.  We still need to work.”

“So…  We head west, and work like usual, while keeping our ears open for any ideas,” Iwaizumi spoke slowly, his eyes glued to the maps.

“Do we know anyone west?”  Hanamaki spoke up.

“You know, with all these young bucks coming up, thinking they own the place, there’s been a lot of crews talking about spreading out.  I’ve heard from a few that they were planning on heading west.”

Iwaizumi paced around the room.  “Who would have thought that a wall covered in maps would become completely useless.”  The group laughed. 

They set into a comfortable routine of setting up the plans and routes.  By the end, they were all exhausted.  Iwaizumi left to go catch the rest of the crew up to speed before setting the ship to cruise for the night and heading into the crew chambers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my loves! Thanks for your patience and keeping up with me! I hope you enjoyed this chapter <3 We are starting to get into the beef of the story so keep your eyes peeled! as always thank you for your comments they mean the world to me! Find me on twitter at @SkyClimber14


	7. Chapter 7

The ship was buzzing with nervous energy.  They were nearing their first landing on solid ground since they had been on Oikawa’s planet.  The crew was ecstatic at the thought.  They moved efficiently, prepping the ship, the cargo, the manifests, everything that was needed to get them off the ship and onto land as soon as possible.

Oikawa and Yahaba shared in their excitement – got caught up in the rush of it, really – but they were still haunted by a twinge of nerves in their stomachs.  Nothing could prepare them for what it would be like.  The darkness of space was brighter than their planet, but it was only marginally.

When the calls on deck were getting more frequent and excited, Oikawa stood up and moved to exit the office.  Before he could get very far, the door swung open and Iwaizumi walked in.  He didn’t seem to notice Oikawa standing along the side wall.  He looked up from his papers and finally saw Oikawa.  The color drained from his face and his scream was short and rough.  Oikawa’s sides hurt as he shook with laughter from Iwaizumi’s reaction.

“W-w-what was _that_?!”  Oikawa could barely breathe between his heaves of laughter.

Iwaizumi’s face broke as he stomped up to Oikawa, “What are you doing lurking in a dark room like that?!”

“You should have seen your face!  You looked like you’d seen a ghost!”  Oikawa was wiping the tears from his eyes, but could hold back the laughter when Iwaizumi was looking at him like he wanted to kill him.

“You!  You look like a damn ghost when you’re slithering in the darkness like some kind of ghoul!”  Iwaizumi looked like he was ready to throttle Oikawa, but that just added to his glee at seeing such a response from the typically stoic man.  Iwaizumi responded by punching him in the shoulder before turning and stalking back to his desk.  “Before I forget.  When we get to the planet, you and Yahaba will need these, and I would suggest you both keep your cloaks up and around you until you get used to the light of stars.”  Iwaizumi handed Oikawa two small pouches.  Oikawa pulled the draw on one of them and pulled out a pair of dark glasses.  Where the glass usually is, this pair had a dark set of glass.  Oikawa sent the other man a confused look.  “They are to protect your eyes from the light.  I have a feeling its going to be hard for you to adjust.”  Oikawa nodded, accepting the advice before the captain shooed him out of the room.  He moved up the deck, still fighting back chuckles at what had happened. 

At this point, the planet was clearly in view and the crew had moved into an eerie calm.  Oikawa stood off to the side of Yahaba and Kyotani talking about knots.  There was a call from the nest about attaching to lifelines and to brace for entry into the atmosphere.  The three men quickly tied their knots before there was a shattering…

**_BOOM_ **

The sound pounded Oikawa’s ears right as he was assaulted on all sides by light so bright, it seemed like it couldn’t be real.  Just seconds ago, they were in the peaceful dim light of empty space, and now Oikawa and Yahaba were on their knees, trying to cover their heads to get as far out of the searing light as they could.  Oikawa blindly fumbled into his pocket for the pouch.  He tossed one in Yahaba’s general direction.  He pulled open the bag before shoving the glasses on his face.

The effects were immediate.  Oikawa sighed in relief as the searing pain was lessened to an annoyance.  He looked over to help Yahaba with his, placing them over his eyes before hearing the groan of relief from his brother.  Oikawa squinted against the light as he looked up, Matsukawa was standing over them.

“What was _that_?”  Oikawa was clutching the glasses to his face. 

“The light of the star refracts when it hits the atmosphere.  All of the ambient light is amplified within the air field.”  Hanamaki called from above them.

His skin tingled everywhere the light touched it.  Iwaizumi made it to the deck, he was holding both of the brothers’ cloaks.  “I told you to wear the glasses and a cloak!”  He threw the cloak over Yahaba while Matsukawa threw the other around Oikawa.

“You didn’t mention it would be a living hell if I didn’t!”  Oikawa grumbled.

“You should start taking every warning I give you as a sign that if you don’t listen, you will probably die.”  Iwaizumi retorted.  The two stood there, facing each other.  Oikawa rolled his shoulder before Yahaba walked between them in a daze.  The starstruck look on his face pulled Oikawa’s attention away from Iwaizumi.  Oikawa furrowed his brows before looking at what Yahaba was seeing.

Oikawa would gladly take the brief feeling of glass in his eyes for the ability to see this ever again.  The planet was a sea of color.  Red was overwhelmingly everywhere, but Oikawa was quickly picking out blues, greens, yellows, and even purples mixed in with the hues.  The ship was slowly traveling high above the surface of the planet.  A warm breeze ruffled the trim of Oikawa’s cloak.  The wind carried an overwhelming freshness with it.  It seeped through his lungs into the rest of his body, invigorating everything it touched.  A shiver ran down his spine at the feeling of the warmth on him.  The sky was a sparkling glacial blue with smatterings of pink clouds.  Oikawa could have never dreamed of a place like this. 

There was a tap on his shoulder; he turned.

On the horizon there was a city.  The harbor was in a sea of emerald green while the majority of the city was sprawling up the side of a mountain.  If Oikawa squinted enough, he could have sworn he saw buildings speckled along the peaks of the mountains.  He lifted his glasses to try to get a better look, but was once again assaulted by the light!  He slammed the glasses back over his eyes.

“Eyes still haven’t adjusted yet?  That’s odd, usually people can take the glasses off by now,” Kindaichi spoke up from beside Oikawa.

“He’s literally never seen light before, try not to sound so dense next time!”  Watari smacked the back of his head.

Oikawa and Yahaba laughed as it dawned on Kindaichi and he tried to apologize profusely.

“Oikawa!  Yahaba!  You two come away from the railing, you make us look like crooks before we even land!”  Hanamaki called from his spot at the helm next to Iwaizumi.  For the first time, Oikawa and Yahaba looked at each other.  Neither of them could hold in their laughter as they saw the other in a full-length cloak and dark shades peering out from under the hood.  They high-fived before moving to sit under the shade of one of the higher decks.

Oikawa, feeling the full effects of the heat flipped off his hood and uncovered as much of himself as he could from the thick cloak.  Just then he saw Kyotani, Iwaizumi and Matsukawa walk across the deck in nothing but their trousers.

“Hol' up!  Why do we have to wear these furnaces while you get to walk around like that?”  Oikawa called out as sweat ran down the side of his face.

“If you so much as step out here uncovered, I can guarantee you’ll regret it,” Iwaizumi called over his shoulder.  His stupidly broad, chiseled shoulder.  Sweat ran down the curve of his back, glistening off his deep skin.

Oikawa, who felt like he would be drier in a pool of swamp water, squinted at him.  He was not about to accept that level of sass from someone who had just screamed at a “ghost”.  He threw off his cloak, pushed his sleeves up his arms, rolled up his pant legs and got to work around the ship.

The tingling on his skin grew the longer he was out in the sun but he refused to acknowledge it.  He ignored all the raised eyebrows and looks of concern from the crew and set himself diligently to his work of neatly organizing the ropes and prepping for the sails to be brought in.

It couldn’t have been more than a few minutes before his skin began to feel like it was doing more than tingling.  The sweat was rolling off him, he wiped it away and sighed in relief as the breeze cooled his skin.  He attributed his red arms to the heat and the sweat and moved on.  Eventually, Iwaizumi approached him.  He was flush, but no where near the same color as Oikawa.

“Ok.  Ok I get it.  You’re dumber than I gave you credit for.  Please just get back in the shade, I don’t want to have to deal with you if this gets any worse.”  He moved his arm to push Oikawa towards the shade, but quickly pulled back, rethinking that.

Oikawa, thoroughly pleased with having shown Iwaizumi, still heard the concern in his voice and decided some shade would be nice.  He made his way back over to Yahaba who was looking at him wide-eyed.

“You’re bright red,” was all he said as Oikawa sat down.

“It’s just the heat, no need to worry, Iwaizumi was just trying to scare us!”  Oikawa extended his arms and legs to look at himself.  However, when the back of his calves hit the wooden deck he hissed and pulled them to him.  He looked for any splinters, but the red skin was unmarred.  Yahaba looked at his legs in distress.

“I don’t think that’s just the heat, Oikawa.  Hanamaki was telling me earlier that the radiation from the stars can also refract in the atmosphere and cause terrible reactions with peoples’ skin…”  He poked Oikawa’s shoulder and flinched when the man hissed at the contact.  “I’ve seen you hot and sweaty before, but you’ve never looked like this.  I don’t know what’s going on with you and the captain, but I think you should start heeding his warnings.”

Oikawa felt like a bucket of cold water had been dumped on him.  Something going on with the captain?  There was _nothing_ going on between him and the captain!

“Yea, keep telling yourself that…”  Yahaba said under his breath.

“ALL HANDS ON DECK.  IT’S TIME TO HIT THE WATER.”  Iwaizumi called from his spot on the upper deck.  Oikawa scrambled to pull his sleeves and pants down, but his skin crawled at the scratchy material against him.  It felt like there were thousands of needles going into his skin.  He rolled his eyes before throwing on his cloak and he nearly yelled as the pain increased incredibly beneath the weight of the cloak.  He sucked in a breath and waddled out into the sun.  The sweat from his body stuck to him, causing the cotton of his shirt to stick to him too.  At first, he was relieved because the chaffing had stopped.  But his stomach turned over at the thought of having to peel the shirt off.

His internal panic was cut short by Iwaizumi calling the attention of the crew.  Yahaba pulled him to the rail just in time to see the bottom of the ship skim the surface of the jewel waters.  Oikawa sucked in a breath as the ship seamlessly passed from the sky to the water.  Before long, the water was almost in reach and the ship was almost to harbor.  The ship was alive with activity and Oikawa and Yahaba watched closely to learn the ropes of what to do.

Once the ship was officially secured to the dock, everyone except Kyotani got off as Iwaizumi began delegating jobs.  Oikawa didn’t know what most of the things he said meant but he straightened up when Iwaizumi looked him up and down before turning to Hanamaki.

“Go find Oikawa some aloe, I don’t want to have to hear his complaining all night.  And see if you can track down some of the ion drops for their eyes too.”  Hanamaki shrugged.

“Why aloe?  Shouldn’t I get some spray?”  There was a mischievous twinkle in the captain’s eyes.

“No, I don’t want this lesson to go unforgotten.  Make sure to grab some zinc while you’re out too, we will be needing a lot of that in the future,” Iwaizumi paused.  His eyes passed over Oikawa one more time, “Actually, leave the zinc to me, I’ll take these two and find some myself.”  Hanamaki gave him a look before turning to face Oikawa.  He shook his head before he walked down the dock.  Iwaizumi motioned for Yahaba and Oikawa to follow him.

With that, they walked into the city.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> remember darlings, summer is almost upon us! wear sunscreen and stay hydrated <3  
> Thank you as always! Your kind words really keep me going!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Please note the additions of violence and blood in the tags. It is not a lot in this chapter, but if that bothers you please read with caution :)

The city was massive.  Oikawa had to contain himself to not walk around with his mouth open as he took in all the sights.  The buildings were a collage of colors, with windows open, people buzzing around, shopfronts with their wares out.  It was almost… Cozy.

Oikawa and Yahaba walked close together behind Iwaizumi; when the one would stray too far away the other would bring their attention back to where they were going.  Oikawa’s neck was starting to cramp from looking at all of the buildings, so he set himself to looking at things eye level.  The people on the streets were from a lot of different places; they came in different sizes, shapes, colors, number of appendages, some were humanoids but some were other things entirely; but they all seemed to get along regardless of their differences.  There was one thing that they all had in common.  The tight trio were getting a lot of weird looks from the people on the street sides.

“Why is everyone giving us weird looks?”  Oikawa whispered to Iwaizumi.

“Cuz you two look ridiculous with your cloaks and sunglasses,” Iwaizumi muttered back to him.

“But it’s not our fault we have to wear this!  I would take it off this second if I could!”  Oikawa whined against Iwaizumi’s shoulder.

“Don’t you dare.  You’ll attract the wrong type of attention where we are going.”  Iwaizumi hissed back at him.

“What kind of attention could be wrong attention?” 

“Listen, right now people are looking at you because the three of us look like we are going to cause trouble.  But if you take your cloak off then you’re going to get more burnt and we run the risk of someone else seeing your skin.”

“Well, what’s wrong with my skin??”

Iwaizumi groaned, “Nothing is wrong with your skin, I mean the map!  You can’t just flaunt that around or people will start asking questions.  Hopefully no one recognized me or my crew either, we don’t know what people know from our little adventure going to your planet.”

Oikawa stopped walking and pulled Iwaizumi to and empty spot on the street.  “Stop being so cryptic!  What does any of that mean?”

Iwaizumi clenched his jaw before looking around.  He pulled Oikawa close by the hood of his cloak, “If people know that I went into a black hole and came back out, they are going to start asking questions.  Not only did we make it back out, we made it out with someone who has a map on their skin.  Those are the kinds of questions we will want to avoid facing for as long as possible if you ask me.”

Oikawa wasn’t completely satisfied with that answer, but he wasn’t going to argue with Iwaizumi in the middle of the street.  But he couldn’t push aside how the other man’s words had offended him.  “Just remember, I’m here to free my people, not just to find your treasure.”  With that he shoved past the broad man and moved back into the flow of people.  He heard the deep inhale from Iwaizumi, who seemed ready to verbally put him in his place, but he just clenched his fists before wadding back in front of Oikawa.

Yahaba appeared beside Oikawa, “You really shouldn’t antagonize him like that.  He is trying to help us.”

Oikawa deflated at his brother’s words.  He knew that.  But he was just so frustrated at everything.  He was useless out here.  Nothing more than a map.  One that didn’t even lead to where he needed it to the most.  He was locked in this sweat bag, tied to a ship he didn’t know about, constantly having the rug pulled out from under him.  How else was he supposed to feel when he was only being told information when it benefited the others involved?  But.  He wasn’t about to let that stop him from what he had promised.  He was going to bring his planet back into the light even if it meant he had to drag the star there with his bare hands.

He straightened his back and puffed out his chest before he renewed his dedication to learning everything as fast as he could.  He scanned the crowd and the shops, taking in as much information as he could.  They had moved to a quieter part of the city.  The cobblestones were rougher here, less use.  Iwaizumi had been leading them through a maze of streets and alleys.  Through the market place, along the water, and into a more residential area.

Just as they had turned a narrow corner, Oikawa felt someone grab his wrist, twist it behind his back, and push him face first against a wall.  His skin screamed in agony with the twist and pressure against it.  His hood fell down his head, revealing his white hair and pale neck.

“It is you!  You’ve seen it ‘aven’t you!”  The words oozed down his back like filth.  Retched breath forced its way into his nose. 

“Get off of him!”  Oikawa heard Iwaizumi and Yahaba yell right as he threw his head back.  It was a straight hit with his assailant’s head.  There was a crunch and the man leapt back from him.  Oikawa whirled around to face him, but he was already backing away from him, his head down, holding his nose as blood dripped down from his hands. 

“You think this will end it?  You don’t even know who you _are_!  You don’t know what you possess.  It’s not something the likes of _them_ could ever hope to teach you to use.  But I have a feeling you know where you must go.  What you must do.”  The voice was low and nasally.  The wet sound from the blood in their nose dripping out whenever they spoke.  Oikawa thought he was going to be sick when the figure finally looked up, revealing a face with no eyes.  They flipped their hood up right as Oikawa saw something that would haunt him for the rest of his life, a ghastly pale face riddled with blue patterns marred by tiny scars that cut through the patterns.  The hooded figure dashed down one of the small alleys and was gone before any of the shell-shocked men could think to give chase.

Oikawa slumped down the wall until he was sitting.  He pulled his knees in close and rested his head on his hands.

“What is happening to me?”  He tried to keep his breath steady, but it could only come out in ragged shakes.

“Hey.  Oikawa look at me.”  Yahaba shook his shoulder.  The pain of the touch ripped through Oikawa.  He snapped to look up at the silver haired man.  “We are going to figure this out.  It is just going to take time.”

Iwaizumi spoke up, next to Yahaba, “You keep looking at me like I know what I’m doing and I’m manipulating you.  But I am just as lost as you are.  I walked through your fields.  I walked through your city.  I’ve seen the desolation wrought by your time in darkness...  But.  I’ve seen your people – your determination.  It was a breath of fresh air.  The people out here have gotten complacent – stagnant.  They sit out in the light, drinking their fine wines and eating their delicacies.  Most of the people here don’t work, they have other people do their work for them.  People like me.  And I do it – I do their work.  I keep my mouth shut and my head down and I do my work and I move on.  But not you… You strive and keep striving.  You have this light in your eye whenever you’re doing something and it ignites a fire in everyone around you.  But.  You have a chip on your shoulder the size of a mountain and you’re not going to brush it off yourself. 

“I am determined to help both you and your people out of there.  I know without a doubt you will change the cosmos if you put your heart to it.  Let me help you.  That wack was right.  I can’t teach you how to do this, but I know how to survive around here, and you know how to survive there.  Stop holding all this weight on yourself and let the rest of us carry some of it.”  Iwaizumi clapped Yahaba on the shoulder. 

It was like Oikawa was under a spell.  Iwaizumi had seen right into his heart and said what he needed to hear.  Only.  What Iwaizumi said wasn’t from Oikawa.  Everything that came out of the Captain’s mouth was sincere and heartfelt.  Oikawa would never question why such a ragtag crew would follow Iwaizumi again.  He saw right through your defenses and brought them crashing down.  There was no fluff, no softness to his words.  Just the truth.

Oikawa took a deep breath, ran a hand through his hair before he pulled himself up by the two hands extended to him – one pale and the other golden brown.

The trio continued walking tightly down the roads until Iwaizumi stopped in front of a small cobblestone building.  The stones were light with green wood detailing.  Small flowers and moss grew around the seams of the stones and creeped out onto the dark stone of the road.   There was smoke coming from the chimney.  Something about this building stood out from the rest of the city they had seen so far.  It seemed truly…. Otherworldly.  This almost seemed like a person’s home but Iwaizumi walked right in like it was any other store.

The interior did little to dull the odd feeling cast by the exterior.  It was one large circular room that somehow didn’t seem to match the size of the exterior at all.  The hearth sat open in the center of the room.  The walls were covered with shelves.  Each section of the shelves contained a different type of thing.  One side of the large room had flowers of different colors and sizes in glass vases.  Right next to that was skeins of yarn with rolls of leather and other fabrics.  Across the room were swords, sheaths, blasters, and holsters.  On the wall closest to the door, there were jars filled with different colored liquids.  Were they even liquid?  Some jars had things suspended in the contents.  Iwaizumi approached the table near the hearth as Oikawa walked the perimeter of the room.

A deep voice bellowed through the dome room, “Iwaizumi!  What can I do for you this fine day?”  Oikawa whirled around to see a boulder of a man standing across the table from Iwaizumi.  Where had he come from?! 

Iwaizumi shook the man’s hand.  “Good to see you, Ukai!  I was worried you wouldn’t be open this time of the season, but it seems like your boys are keeping you well stocked!

 The man chortled.  “You know they keep me on my toes even though I’m not out there with them anymore.  But enough about me, what are you doing in these areas?”

“Oh, you know, the usual.  Always looking for more work.  You know anyone looking for help out west?”  Iwaizumi was leaning heavily against the table.

Ukai hummed deep in his chest, “I think my stocks are getting a little too full.  I’ll have to take care of some stock before I can sit around chatting with you.”

The captain rolled his shoulders before speaking, “Well I have a list here of things we need before we can set off again.  I suppose this is as good a place as any for our needs.”  Iwaizumi winked at the shopkeeper before pulling a small tablet from his pocket and handing it to the man.  The graying man grunted before taking the tablet, tapping on it a few times and began walking around the room.

Oikawa and Yahaba stood out of the way, by the door.   The man gave them a spare glance, but otherwise ignored them.  He continued moving around the room, picking up jars and began separating things into other jars and placing things on the table in front of Iwaizumi.  He grabbed a few jars and grabbed a bowl.  He mixed them together, before dumping in a collection of liquids into the mix.  He mixed them up before plopping the mix into a jar before handing it to Iwaizumi.  The table was now littered with jars of varying sizes and contents.  Ukai held out a tablet of his own which Iwaizumi placed his palm on before waving the duo over to help him carry the supplies.

“So, about those jobs.”  Iwaizumi said as the shopkeeper leaned in close. 

“Yea I heard there’s some uppity merchant who is setting up a challenge for anyone who wants to join.  The first to find the treasure he hid, gets the bid for his job.  That’s why there are so many ships in port today.  May also be why I’m in town.”

“You’re kidding me, right?  What kind of bougie pomp is getting all these people involved rather than just hiring someone?”

“The west is different.  You don’t have the same contacts out there you do in the east.  So, a job like this from an established western merchant is a solid foot in the door to the west.”

Iwaizumi grumbled under his breath, “When does this challenge start?”

“Yesterday morning.  Although I haven’t heard any news yet.  The merchant is holding a stall near the gate at the top of the market district.”  Iwaizumi groaned before he started wrapping jars in spare cloth and sticking them in his pouch while Oikawa and Yahaba did the same.  Iwaizumi saluted Ukai before they left the shop.

“We’re going to go enter that challenge, right?”  Oikawa asked.

“The rest of them have a whole day’s advance on us.  It would be like jumping into white water.”  Oikawa just stared blankly back at Iwaizumi.  “Oh.  Right.  Our odds are close to none because we are so far behind.”

“We should go check it out.  You never know!  And you heard Ukai, it’s a big opportunity.”

“We should at least go get some information,” Yahaba pipped up.

Iwaizumi, realizing he was outvoted accepted and led them in the direction Ukai had described.  As they approached, the crowd got tighter and tighter until they were forced single-file to shuffle through the throng of people.

“Not one single crew who looked for your treasure has found _anything_!  You need to either give out a hint or just pick a damn crew to hire!  We are done wasting our time playing your silly game rather than working like we came out here to do!”  An angry voice raised above the crowd, everyone quieted down when they heard it.

“I can and will wait for as long as necessary, until I find a crew I deem worthy to move my cargo.  If no one has found what I hid then obviously none of you are worth _my_ time.”  A smooth voice carried out over the quiet audience.  There was a slam right as Iwaizumi pushed his way to the front.  A stocky man had slammed his palms down on the table in front of the merchant, who to his credit did not so much as flinch.  He just looked up at him with a lazy eye before turning his head away from the man.  The man turned a bright red before storming off through the packed street.

“Ah, a fresh face!  I haven’t seen you among the squall who have come through.”  The merchant was speaking again.  When Oikawa turned to face him, he saw he was looking right at him.  Iwaizumi turned to look at Oikawa with wide eyes.  He motioned for Oikawa to walk up there.

As Oikawa approached the table, he saw there were a few things laid out across it.  A map, a credit as well as an actual piece of gold.  Iwaizumi had explained that for the most part the currency had shifted from physical money to credits, and that most physical money was worthless.  But people hate completely letting go of the past and for whatever reason, the common metal, gold was a highly prized currency.  Oikawa’s eyebrow arched.

“Listen, I’m getting so tired of these half-baked crews thinking they are entitled to this job just because they ran around for a day on a vacation planet.  You find what I hid, you keep what’s inside and you get my job of carrying my cargo west.  If you impress me, I may even give you a cut of it when we get to our destination.”  The man sighed and rubbed his thumb between his eyebrows.

Oikawa perused the items on the table.  While the man’s eyes were closed Oikawa picked up the gold coin and spun it around in his hand.  A vision of a beach filled his eyes.  His sight was half buried in the sand.  Just out of the corner of his eye he could see a large tree that had been knocked over – red sap was oozing out of the cracks.  Suddenly there was a loud bell sounding right above him.  Oikawa slid the coin back onto the table.  The bell sound faded.  His ears pricked for the sound, but came up with nothing.  “This was supposed to be a fun little game…  But I guess we can’t have nice things when people are this greedy now can we?”  By this point it seemed like the man wasn’t even talking to Oikawa anymore.  Oikawa, nodding, like he was seriously invested in what the man was saying casually slid his hand over the small map that looked to be only a small piece of a bigger map.  It looked like it was a small island.  A small spot right along his spine tinged.  He caught Iwaizumi’s eye before giving a small nod.  Iwaizumi’s eyes lit up before he motioned towards the merchant.  Oikawa formally accepted his terms and with that the trio quickly walked back to their ship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone <3 Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! As always thank you for your comments! Come find me on twitter @SkyClimber14 :)


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has a little bit of a gross start! Just a warning! I tried not to make it super graphic, but if you dont like any sort of body issues, then you should skip the first paragraph or so! Sunburns are wicked ya'll, please take care of your skin <3

Oikawa was fighting back a scream as Yahaba and Iwaizumi tried to help him remove the shirt that was currently stuck to his skin.  The skin on his arms was so burned it had begun to blister.  When they tried to remove the shirt, it aggravated the blisters causing them to ooze and wet the shirt, making it even more difficult to remove.  His skin wasn’t the only thing weeping, Oikawa was on the verge of tears.

“Someone please tell me who signed me up for this?!”  Oikawa cried out

“I think we just need to cut the shirt at this point….  It’s only making things worse,” Iwaizumi swore.

“Oh.  Oh, SURE cut the shirt NOW!  I totally agree!”  Oikawa was speechless.

“Yahaba go grab me the shears in the desk and then go get Hanamaki, we’ll need the things he got in town.”  Yahaba nodded before scurrying off. 

Oikawa, still leaning with his hands braced on Iwaizumi’s wall, made a quip about speediness.  He pressed his forehead to the wall as he felt the cold metal of the shears slide across his shoulder and begin snipping.  Oikawa was sure he was going to pass out as the, now loose, material was gently peeled off of his arms.  He thought the worst of it was over but his skin still felt like an open flame was being held against him.  Any shift of skin or muscle felt like a blade going through him.  Oikawa flinched as the door swung open, blasting him with a gust of wind.  He stood as still as possible, praying that it would calm down soon.

“You need my assistance?”  Hanamaki asked.

“Yea, go get the spray….  Quickly, please.”  Iwaizumi said through gritted teeth as he slid the shears up the length of Oikawa’s leg.

“I thought you didn’t want him to get off too easily?”

“Does this look like he’s getting off easily to you?  I’m more worried about him keeping all his skin!”  Iwaizumi snapped.  Hanamaki’s head peeked around to see Oikawa still as a statue.  There was a sharp intake of breath and the door closed gentler than it opened.

He was back within a minute with a handful of things.  He identified each as he placed them on the desk beside Yahaba, “Spray, aloe, wrap, and a bowl.  The spray should handle the majority of the burn, but you’re gunna wanna wrap it with aloe rags for at least a few days….  Or until it looks like the irritation is gone, I guess.  Yahaba, I’ll show you how to prepare the wraps in the aloe.”  Hanamaki and Yahaba set to work on the desk while Iwaizumi prepped the spray.

“Hold still, this will be over soon.”

Oikawa hissed as an ice-cold spray smoothed over his skin leaving a puffy white film as it passed.  He groaned as his skin breathed its first sigh of relief.  His skin tingled with pinpricks and goosebumps, but not with the same painful intensity.  But with one arm done, it seemed like the other burned with even more fervor.  Iwaizumi meticulously passed over every inch of scorched skin.  His hands shook as now his skin and the muscle underneath were completely numb.

“Alright, come, sit down.  I’ve sprayed someone’s legs before and they collapsed right on top of me.”  Oikawa followed Iwaizumi’s instructions, sitting on a small wooden stool.  The pain ripped back through him as the skin on his knees stretched out and the rest pulled tight over his muscles.  At this point he was ready to just get rid of his legs all together!

Iwaizumi sprayed his legs without any warning, his legs jerked underneath him.  Oikawa slumped in relief as his body was engulfed in icy coldness after what felt like an eternity standing in a fire.  The tingling was just as intense, but the numbness came just as quickly and soon he was sitting with most of his weight leaning back on Iwaizumi - who had moved to support him.  He closed his eyes as he accepted his fate of being only a torso for the rest of his life.

“Oikawa, we’re gunna wrap your arms and legs now.  Try notta move around too much.”  Oikawa hummed his assent before drifting off in the peace of a cool calmness for the first time in days.  He thought he may vaguely feel them moving his body around, but he ignored it.  The men kept talking above him, but as the tingling drifted further and further into his consciousness, they drifted further and further away.

 

* * *

 

 

Oikawa was floating in the static of his limbs and of the current of his mind.  He shifted in the waves as he was stripped away from himself.  He finished his metamorphosis into a small piece of something greater where the weight of everything didn’t sit on his shoulders.  He simply moved with the flow, following where it led, sinking deeper into the comfortable cold.  The darkness was comfortable, intact.  Everything held its weight proper.

“Everything as it should be.”  Oikawa jerked awake as a soft, smooth voice cut through his consciousness.  The three men in the room looked at him in surprise.

“What did you just say?”  His voice was small and ragged.  Yahaba and Hanamaki shared a look as they wrapped his left leg.

“That…  Watari found the island with an old bell tower on it?”  Hanamaki spoke slowly.

“And before that?”

“’We should hurry.’  Oikawa are you ok?  Did the burn get to your head?”  Hanamaki finished wrapping Oikawa’s left leg and moved his slimy aloe covered hand to Oikawa’s forehead.  Oikawa grimaced as his hair stuck to his forehead in the goop.

He pulled his head away, pushing back on Iwaizumi who still cradled him.  “No, I’m fine I just heard something.  A woman.”

Yahaba snorted, “You dreamed about a woman?”

Oikawa shot him a look, “No.  It was not a dream…  Was it?”  Oikawa’s brows furrowed.

“There’s nothing wrong with having a dream of a woman.”  Iwaizumi laughed behind him, the vibrations traveling deep into Oikawa.

“NO!  That is not what happened.”  Oikawa whipped around to face Iwaizumi who just looked at him before bursting out laughing again.  The other two men cracked up at Oikawa’s reaction before Oikawa moved to stand up.

“Woah.  Woah there, buddy, let’s not do anything rash.”  Iwaizumi placed a hand gently on his shoulder.

“But Watari found the island, I need to get there and find the treasure.”

“The ship isn’t there yet, so just sit still and relax for a minute.”

“How did Watari find it if the ship isn’t there yet?”

“He went out ahead on a surfer.”

“A what?”

Iwaizumi groaned before offering a hand to Oikawa.  The three men and a mummy left the small room and walked across the hallway into the office.  Iwaizumi walked to the back wall before pressing some buttons.  The wooden wall opened up revealing a screen that looked out the back of the ship.  Oikawa gasped as Iwaizumi swiped the screen, switching between images until he could see a shot of Watari on some sort of board with a sail on it.  Oikawa watched with wide eyes as Watari moved quickly through the brush and traffic of the dock.  He sailed and swooped, expertly avoiding every obstacle until he arrived right at an opening in their ship.  The video cut out.

“It’s time for us to head out.  Oikawa you stay here with Yahaba inside, for now.  I’ll come get you when we get to the island.”  Iwaizumi and Hanamaki left quickly. 

As soon as the door closed Oikawa turned to Yahaba, “I have _got_ to ride one of those!”

Yahaba put his hands up defensively.  “You know who you have to ask for that.”

Oikawa slumped, not wanting to think of asking Iwaizumi for something like that.  The two of them sat down and really talked about their plan for how to move on.  Oikawa told him about the voice, the weird things he’s feeling, the hooded figure.  Oikawa always loved hearing the silver-haired man’s calm approach to the things that toss Oikawa off kilter.  They balance each other out.  They have the other’s back.  Two sides of the same coin.

 But Oikawa smiled as he thought back to what Iwaizumi said.  Maybe now they weren’t a coin.  What is a 9-sided shape?  Oikawa shrugged, simply accepting the Blue Castle as his personal 9-sided coin.

 

* * *

 

 

There was a knock at the door, “We made it, you want to come out and point us in the right direction?”  Iwaizumi said from the doorway.

Oikawa lifted himself from where he was laying on Yahaba’s lap, they made their way back to Oikawa’s room to grab new clothes.  He would have to get a new set when they could afford to do so…  Oikawa pulled the loose clothes on gingerly over his wrapped limbs.  When Yahaba had ensured all his wrap was still in place they moved to the hallway.  They turned towards the exit and time slowed down right before Oikawa screamed. 

There was a figure looming at the end of the hall blocking them from the exit.  The body stretched the whole length of the door way and it looked like it stretched the whole height too.  

Oikawa was immediately set back to his dream.  Had the voice found him here?  What was going to happen?  Was the crew ok? The form turned in their direction at the sound of Oikawa’s scream.

“What is wrong with you??”  Iwaizumi’s voice boomed down the hall.

“What is wrong with us?  What is wrong with _you_ , Iwa?  Lurking at the end of the hall like some kind of madman!”  Oikawa breathed a sigh of relief at the familiar voice.  Yahaba shot him a concerned look, but still followed when Oikawa began moving up the hall.

“You need to get your head out of the clouds,” Iwaizumi grumbled as he led them to the door.  He grabbed something from a shelf on the wall, it was one of the jars from the shop.  He grabbed a small amount onto his hands before spreading it out.  His hands quickly moved up and smoothed the goo over Oikawa’s face.  The man sputtered and stepped back. 

“Hold still you, big baby, you need this so you won’t get burnt.”  Iwaizumi chastised Oikawa as if he was a child.  Oikawa scowled as Iwaizumi spread the paste out over his exposed skin.  The feeling was quite pleasant when Oikawa was expecting it.  Iwaizumi’s hands were warm and the paste made them smooth and soft on his cheeks.  The captain withdrew his hands before offering the jar for Yahaba to apply his own.  The two laughed at the shorter man when he had white streaks over his face.  Iwaizumi took mercy on him and rubbed in the goop.

When they were finally done, they walked out onto the lower deck of the ship before hopping down onto a large stretch of sand bordered by water.  There was a soft crunch as Oikawa’s boots hit the loose sand.  He bent over gently to run his fingers through the fine gravel.  It rolled through his hands and piled together.  He looked over to Yahaba who was already enthralled with the fluid roll of the water.  Oikawa walked over to him, cursing his wraps from keeping him from walking in… But that didn’t stop him from pushing Yahaba face first into an oncoming wave before he floundered trying to run away along the sand.  The laughter and yelling chased after him as he flipped and flopped, continually losing his balance on the loose footing.

The yelling got louder, Oikawa cursed Yahaba’s knight training.  Oikawa darted towards the small tree-line, hoping to dodge his brother in there.  He made it a few strides, avoiding trees and things on the ground alike.  He looked over his shoulder to see Yahaba and the rest of the crew only a few strides behind him.  A smile was stretched across his face.  Right.  Before…

He tripped on a log and fell face first into the sand.  He tensed in expectation of Yahaba flopping his wet self all over Oikawa, but that never came.  He looked across his shoulder to see the crew was all looking over him at something.  Oikawa flopped over to see what they were looking at.

Right in front of him, why did it have to be right in front of where he fell?  There was a treasure chest a mere arms-length away.  And not just any treasure chest.  One that was half buried at an off angle with the lid cracked open, revealing a small stack of gold with a letter on top.  Oikawa laid his head down to laugh at himself before popping up and facing the crew.

“I told you I would find it!”  The crew burst into laughter as they all jumped over the sandy mummy man.  They bounded over to the chest as Oikawa moved around to stand up without ripping his wraps.  He looked over the crowd to see Iwaizumi heaved the chest out of the sand.  Oikawa, being who he was, was very sure not to miss the way the sun danced on Iwaizumi’s muscles or the way his pants clung on for dear life as he squatted for the chest and how the light sand highlighted his dark hair.  He quietly cleared his throat before Matsukawa opened the letter and read it aloud for the crew.

“’Congratulations on finding the treasure, consider your bid taken.  This gold and small amount of credits serves as your incentive to return back to me and discuss our terms for the future.’  Signed Allion.”  The crowd whooped their cheer as the chest was hoisted up and they began their trek back to the ship.  Oikawa itched as the sand sank deeper and deeper into his wraps.

They boarded the Blue Castle and set their course back to the city.  Hanamaki and Matsukawa brought the chest down deep into the hold to store its contents.  Iwaizumi, Yahaba, Oikawa and Watari walked into the office to set the ship back towards the city.  Oikawa kept messing with his wraps until he was able to undo the ones on his legs.  He groaned as they unraveled to his boots and sand just poured out the sides.

“Oh, come on, do that on the deck! Oh…  Never mind…”  Iwaizumi groaned.  “Try to keep it in one spot so we can clean it later.”  He turned back to the desk.

Oikawa finished unwrapping himself right as everyone moved out of the room to complete their tasks.  He stood barefoot in a pile of sand and discarded wraps.  He gently tried to wipe the sand that was embedded into his skin but it put up a bit of a fight.  The skin was still red and slightly enflamed, but most of the blisters had gone away and the burning sensation was gone.  His skin still had an infernal itch to it though, whether it was from the healing or the sand, Oikawa wasn’t sure.  There was a rustling next to him, Oikawa looked up to see Iwaizumi wetting a cloth before walking up to him. 

Oikawa watched intently as Iwaizumi slowly approached.  He held his breath as the man held out the cloth before reaching out for Oikawa’s hand.  Once he had it, he ran the cloth gently up Oikawa’s arm.  He kept his eyes firmly in line with Oikawa’s.  When he saw no adverse reaction to the pressure, he took a step in, cupped Oikawa’s elbow and rubbed the cloth back and forth along his skin, slowly removing all the impacted sand.

Oikawa hummed as he was gently scrubbed.  His skin was turning a brighter pink, but he only felt comfort at the freedom from the invasive gravel.  Oikawa leaned into the shorter man as his ministrations moved up his arm into his shoulder and back.  Iwaizumi stood still as a strong, warm pillar while he wiped all the collected sand off the pale man.  The two stood there for a while, hearts pounding, bodies close, both too afraid to make the first move. 

Oikawa took a deep breath to say something, right as there was a knock on the door.

“Captain?  We made it to the city, we should probably head in now if we want a chance to catch Allion before he retires for the night.”  Yahaba’s voice carried in through the open door.  Iwaizumi stepped away from Oikawa.

“Of course, we will be out in a minute.”  Oikawa let out a sharp, hollow laugh.  He pulled his shirt and pants back on, pulling the sleeves down the full length of his arms and tucked the pants into his boots.  He nodded to Iwaizumi and they headed down the hall where Oikawa applied a bit of the paste to protect his hands.  Iwaizumi pulled Oikawa’s hair up into a hat before he could walk out the door.

“Listen, Captain, if you don’t want anyone else to see me, all you have to do is say so.”  Oikawa winked at him before he walked out the door.  He couldn’t quite tell if the color on Iwaizumi’s face was a blush or a look he should run away from.  Oikawa took the safe route and skipped away from the door with laughter dancing around him.

From there, everything moved in super speed.  They moved briskly through the city, signed the contract with the merchant, packed his cargo on their ship, aligned his maps with theirs, checked their supplies for the journey, and finally, cast off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovelies! Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! As always, thank you for your amazing comments <3  
> Stay Safe, Stay Amazing!   
> Follow me on twitter @skyclimber14


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Listen, I wrote this almost purely for myself and then realized I should probably add a little more plot to it, so here you go! <3

Things were getting out of hand for Oikawa.  The merchant had brought his workers with him, taking up the rest of the free beds with the crew with the merchant taking up the extra room.  Neither Iwaizumi or Oikawa were comfortable with risking the merchant’s men seeing the Map by having Oikawa room with them in the crew’s room. 

Oikawa had been content with taking a hammock out onto the deck and sleeping out under the stars.  Of course, the universe had other plans.  The alarms on the ship sounded that there would be a storm closing in on they and they would have to stay inside the ship to avoid the radiation.

That led to where they are now…  Oikawa shuffling around in Iwaizumi’s chambers while the other man riffled around looking for a pillow for him.

“Ah ha!”  He popped up victoriously clutching a pillow in his hands.  Oikawa smiled at him before the pillow was chucked at his head.  Oikawa caught it before looking at the man confused.  Was he supposed to throw it back?  Did Iwaizumi expect him to do something with it now?  Was Iwaizumi mad he had to get a pillow in the first place?  Countless thoughts raced through his mind as he watched Iwaizumi move around the room.

Those countless thoughts made a full stop and came to a singular focus – Iwaizumi was stripping out of his clothes right in front of him.  Oikawa cleared his throat and Iwaizumi looked over his shoulder as he was pulling his pants down to see Oikawa was looking at him.  And boy was there a lot to look at.

Iwaizumi was all tanned skin and muscle.  He was broad in all the right places, and filled out everywhere.  His skin was smooth, stretched out over his muscles, marred only rarely by lighter scars.

Oikawa tracked his movement as he grabbed something from his trunk before turning and throwing it at Oikawa, who in a daze, failed to catch it.  He was smacked right in the face by a shirt.  And then again by a pair of soft pants.  Oikawa only got more confused, shooting a look at Iwaizumi.

“Those should fit you, and be more comfortable.”  He said as he pulled a pair of soft pants up his legs.  “You do know what pajamas are don’t you?”  Iwaizumi was looking at Oikawa with a shocked look on his face.  Oikawa shook himself out of whatever stupor he was in and shook his head.

“I know what they are… I just was not expecting this.”  Oikawa spoke as he pulled his shirt off over his head.

“Well, I ripped up your other pair of clothes, and I haven’t seen you with any others.  I just assumed you could use some… And I don’t want you in my clean bed with your dirty outside clothes.”  Iwaizumi replied from where he sat on the bed.  Oikawa looked over to see he remained shirtless even as he lounged.  He took a deep breath before he pulled his boots off and moved to step out of his pants.  He was used to undressing around others, but it felt different with Iwaizumi.  Was it because he was hopelessly attractive or was it something different?  He felt both completely at easy but also super jumpy.

He was about to pull the new shirt over his head when Iwaizumi abruptly stood up from the bed.

“Have there been any changes?”  His fingertips skimmed the skin of Oikawa’s ribs, raising goosebumps in his wake.

“Not since you saw it a few hours ago.”  Oikawa spoke quietly.

“Right.  Sorry.  I just – like maps.”  Iwaizumi pulled his hand off Oikawa’s skin but didn’t step away.

“Yes, Kyotani was telling me you studied under a master cartographer before you became a captain.”  He pulled the shirt over his head, cutting off Iwaizumi’s intense stare.  The captain blinked, brought out of his daze before he met Oikawa’s eyes.

“Yea,” Iwaizumi breathed.  He looked like he wanted to say something else, but he just spun on his heels and walked back to the bed.  Oikawa swallowed before pulling on his pants and walked over to join him.  Iwaizumi waited until Oikawa was under the covers before he doused the lights.

Both of the men lay still for a moment, neither wanting to jostle the other.  There was just enough room that they were not touching, but it was not spacious.  Iwaizumi grunted before he rolled over onto his side, his arm shoved under his pillow as his breath evened out.

 Oikawa stared at the low ceiling for a moment, his heightened night vision slowly coming in.  When he felt that Iwaizumi was asleep, he rolled on to his side to face him.  It was not clear, but Oikawa could just make out his features in the darkness.  His raspy breathing was a comfort, the warmth was radiating off his body in their close proximity.  Oikawa’s eyes wandered across his strong features.  His face seemed softer when it was smooshed against a pillow, but Oikawa could still see his strong eyebrows and supple cheeks that gave way to elegant lips and a sturdy jaw.  If Oikawa looked closely, he could see the beginning of stubble growing along his chin.  He smiled to himself, trying to think happy thoughts to keep the dreams away.

 

* * *

 

 

Oikawa’s sleep was warm and undisturbed.  He could never remember sleeping in a bed this soft or warm before. The sheets sucked him in while the warmth carried him away to a whole different world.  His skin was warm and his fingers tingled.  Was… was his arm sweating?  Everything seemed to get warmer, and heavier.  Oikawa felt like someone had laid a boulder on his left shoulder.  He blinked his eyes open.   The reality of the situation was literally mind blowing.

Iwaizumi, in all his stoic faces, and built, broad chest, was laying splayed out with his face pushed into Oikawa’s shoulder and his tan chest pushed up against Oikawa’s.

His trunk of an arm was sprawled across Oikawa’s stomach, pulling up the hem of his shirt allowing his large hand to rest on the skin just above his hip.

Everything about Iwaizumi was warm.  His skin, his breath, it was like being covered in the thickest, warmest blanket ever. The heat and pressure were grounding.  Oikawa moved ever so slightly to free his arm, gently threading his fingers through the short black hair.

The hand on his tummy twitched.  Oikawa slowed his movements but kept at it, anticipating Iwaizumi’s shocked reaction.  Would he be embarrassed?  Would he blush or stutter?  Was this a normal thing that Oikawa is making a big deal out of?  Oikawa snorted at the thought.  There was no way the ever-serious Iwaizumi was a cuddler by night.

There was a knock on the door and Iwaizumi groaned deep in his throat.  The vibration tingled through Oikawa.  He eased his head off of the other man’s chest, blinked his eyes open before he briskly rolled off the bed.  Oikawa looked after him in surprise as the man just scratched his back before pulling off his pants and changed into fresh clothes.

Did Oikawa do something wrong?  The captain did not so much as look at him as he got out of bed.  The skin of Oikawa’s chest and arm was cooling quickly without the man there to warm him. 

Iwaizumi never looked back as he ran a hand through his hair and put on his boots.  Oikawa scrambled out of bed, throwing on his clothes as he followed behind Iwaizumi, quietly, not ready to pull him out of whatever daze he was in.

Iwaizumi walked out into the hall, Oikawa catching Matsukawa’s eye as he saw the confused look on the white-haired man’s face.

“Just let him wake up.  He’s practically a zombie in the morning before he’s had breakfast.  It’s the perfect time for pranks.”  He snickered before walking into the mess hall.

Oikawa, intent on watching the captain work through his process, followed close behind him like a puppy, even sitting with him at the table.

Iwaizumi looked like he could have fallen back asleep right there at the table with his bowl as his pillow, but there seemed to be something that was preventing him from doing that.  He was looking around the room, but it didn’t seem like anything was actually going past his eyes.  He made eye contact with Oikawa right as he put a spoonful of food into his mouth.

He squinted at him before pointing his spoon at him accusingly.  “Something happened last night didn’t it?”  Oikawa nearly choked on his own spoonful of food.

“Yes.”  Iwaizumi nodded while humming but the worry lines only deepened on his face.

He kept chewing his food while contemplating the night, “Did Hanamaki and Matsukawa get into my sock drawer again?”

Oikawa smiled while shaking his head.  Iwaizumi pulled a face before turning back to his food, deciding solving the mystery was less important than eating breakfast.

The two sat quietly for the rest of breakfast, with Iwaizumi done with his questions about the night, which seriously lessoned Oikawa’s enjoyment.

 

* * *

 

 

Iwaizumi called a small meeting between himself, Hanamaki, Matsukawa, Yahaba and Oikawa.

“Ok.  I think we can all agree that we were shocked when Oikawa found that chest yesterday.   But we need to figure out what this means moving forward.”

“What this means?  It means I am the best!”  Oikawa pipped up with his arms crossed.

“No.  It just means you were lucky.”  Matsukawa quipped.

“Watari circled that beach multiple times and didn’t see anything that could have been that chest.  You want me to believe that Oikawa just happened to fall face first right in front of the chest while our best scout couldn’t see anything?”  Iwaizumi spoke lowly from where he leaned against his desk.

“Ok, so he was _really_ lucky!”  Hanamaki said.

“That it a little rude Maki!”  Oikawa quipped.

“But what if it’s something more than luck?  He always had a knack for odd things while we were in training together.”  Yahaba spoke calmly.

“So, we test him.”  Iwaizumi said with an air of conclusion.

“Test me?  While we are on a ship moving through space?”  Oikawa looked at him in disbelief.

“Yes.  When is a better time?”  With that Iwaizumi stood up and moved to the chest behind his desk.  He tugged it open before pulling out two coins.  He tossed one to Hanamaki before instructing them to leave and hide the coin.  Oikawa tried to argue but the two men were quickly out of the room and his words fell on deaf ears and Iwaizumi and Yahaba were talking about his training.

Oikawa rolled his eyes as he snatched the other coin off the desk, sat down and rolled it between his fingers.  At first, all he saw was darkness and a faint sense of warmth in the back of his mind.  He sat there and pondered for a moment before he dropped the coin in his pocket and moved over to the chest.  When he saw that Iwaizumi had left it unlocked, he cracked it open before he palmed the coin once again.  Immediately, his suspicions were confirmed.  The darkness he was seeing was from the view of the coins remaining in the chest. 

How would he be able to find the other missing piece?  He closed the chest and moved back to the desk.  His mind occupied with the task at hand, he twirled the coin in his fingers.  The view that was obviously the chest had a different feel when he thought back to the warm feeling in the back of his mind.  He focused on that feeling for a moment, feeling like he was tugging on a locked door, before his sight erupted with light as he was suddenly looking up at the underside of Hanamaki’s jaw.  Oikawa stuttered and slapped the coin back onto the desk, drawing the attention of the other men still in the room. 

Oikawa cleared his throat, waved them off before he tentatively picked the coin back up.  This time, while his vision was initially black, the warmth felt tangible and Oikawa was able to grab onto it, and his vision was pulled right back to the coin in Hanamaki’s hand.

Oikawa sat there transfixed by the movement before his eyes, simply taking in the moving scenes.  He tried to track where they were in the ship, Hanamaki’s jaw wasn’t much of a clue.  He waited for, after what felt like an eternity, the duo stopped, reaching high up, they placed the coin on top of what looked like a stack of boxes in the cargo hold.

Oikawa dropped the coin into his pocket before he faced the two men.  “Time to go,” That broke up whatever conversation they were having.

“But they haven’t gotten back yet.”  Iwaizumi said.

“I do not need them to come back.  In fact, I bet they will walk back in within the next minute.”  Iwaizumi rolled his eyes but pulled out a clock.  The trio waited.  Iwaizumi put his wrist down, looked up at Oikawa and opened his mouth

The door burst open and Iwaizumi’s jaw went from ready to speak to slack when Hanamaki and Matsukawa waltzed in.

“Alright, go find it, little bloodhound.”  Oikawa smirked at Iwaizumi before prancing out of the room.  Everyone followed closely behind as Oikawa made a beeline right to the cargo hold.  He felt the burning stares from the other men on his back as he looked for a stack of boxes high enough that would match the height of what he saw in his vision.  He walked around before he stopped right next to one that looked about right.  He looked back at Hanamaki and back to the stack.  He shrugged before reaching to the top of the boxes.  He tapped around for a second before his hand touched cold metal.  A shit-eating grin stretched across his face as he pulled the coin down, victoriously.

The men, except for Yahaba, stuttered in amazement. 

“How did you know?!”  Matsukawa demanded.

“I could see you walking the coin here when I touched this one.”  Oikawa held up the other coin from his pocket.  His vision went wonky, but when he held them together and pushed aside the weird feeling in his head, he was able to push away the vision from the coins inside the chest. 

His head swam a bit but he was able to focus on the group of men, with the dark box hovering in the back of his mind.

“So, you found this one because you cheated?”  Iwaizumi huffed.

“I did _not_ cheat!  I found that chest because I touched the treasure it was associated with; so, of course, I would do the same thing here.”  Oikawa crossed his arms over his chest.

Iwaizumi chewed on that thought for a moment before he spoke again.  “So, we know you can find something if you can watch it.  But you didn’t watch the chest being placed, you found it after it had been there for a few days.  Was that just blind luck that you found it?”

“That it what I was trying to tell you when this whole thing started, but you would not listen to me.”  All of the men looked away from him at that point…  So, they had heard him but chose to ignore him!

“So… What would you suggest then?”  Yahaba spoke up.

“I do not know.  Put it in something so I cannot see you walking with it?”

Iwaizumi frowned, thinking that over, “That could work.  We could have the crew members take turns hiding it around the ship.”

“They are probably ready to jump out of their skin by this point.  Kyotani has already arm wrestled all of them who will even look at him and the rest of the crew are trying to not rip their ears off.”  Matsukawa chuckled.

Iwaizumi groaned, rubbing between his eyebrows before he led the men back up to the main deck.

 

* * *

 

 

The rest of the day-long trip was spent with the crew hiding a small box with the coin in it around the ship.  Each time, Oikawa would weave his way through the darkness of his mind until he would think of a spot where it could be.  As the day progressed, he got faster and faster until he was able to find the small box in a startlingly short amount of time.  It just felt like he was being led by the hand right to where he needed to be.

The day had long “set” and Oikawa was still badgering crewmembers to hide the chest for him, asking for, “just one more, I can be quicker this time.”  But one more was never enough for him.  The feeling of sliding his mind around in the darkness, hunting for the box was exhilarating; it spiked his blood and successfully finding the box sent him through the roof.  But that was before Iwaizumi stormed into the room and ordered the rest of the crew to go to bed and for Oikawa to stop and get ready for bed as well.  Oikawa, wilting like a scolded puppy, sulked back to Iwaizumi’s room with the dark-skinned man closing the door gracefully behind them.

“Why did you make me stop?  You were the one suggesting I do it in the first place.”  Oikawa whined as he pulled the shirt off his back.

“We are landing tomorrow and I can’t have you and the crew exhausted from running around the ship all night,” Was Iwaizumi’s curt reply.

“Then just let _me_ stay up and practice.”  He knew he was being obsessional but he couldn’t help it.  If he was going to find a way to save his people, he needed to do everything perfectly.

“Do you even know what time it is? How long you’ve been running around?  I saw you barely ate lunch or dinner, and you only agreed to that because no one would hide the box for you.”  Oikawa could hear the irritation building in Iwaizumi’s voice.

Oikawa stayed quiet for a moment, truly trying to think of something to say.

“Yea, that’s what I thought.  I get it you want to be perfect, but you can’t do nothin’ when you’re exhausted and burnt out.”  Iwaizumi turned around to face him.  “You need to get out of your head and start thinking about the next move rather than trying to be ten moves ahead all the time.”  His arms were crossed over his chest.

Oikawa took a deep breath.  He allowed himself to feel the exhaustion, which he had been pushing back against.  It hit him like a strike to the face.  His shoulders slumped and his shirt dropped to the floor with a soft _fwp_.  He let out his breath before looking up at the rustling across the room. 

Iwaizumi had changed pants and was walking bare-chested over to Oikawa.  He stopped a few paces away, not quite maintaining eye contact.  “I was asleep on top of you, wasn’t I?”  The blunt tone of his voice surprised Oikawa, like he had known all along.  He nodded in return, not quite back to chipper after his scolding.  Iwaizumi nodded slowly back, humming in the back of his throat.  “Did it make you uncomfortable?”

“No, it was… Nice.”  Oikawa said softy.  Iwaizumi nodded, moving his head to hide the small smile creeping on his lips.

He turned slightly towards the bed, giving Oikawa room to change his pants.  He left his shirt off to the side, moving into bed next to Iwaizumi.

The two lay next to each other for a moment before Oikawa turned on his side to face Iwaizumi.  The other man also turned to face Oikawa; his arm shoved under his pillow.

“Night.”  Iwaizumi said quietly, nearly a whisper.

Oikawa felt a smile creeping across his face, “Goodnight.” 

Oikawa fell asleep with a smile on his face, anticipating the morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Thank you so much for your patience with this chapter! I'm sorry it took me longer than usual to get it out. I've been super busy with work and then a small vacation with my family for my birthday! Also, I tried some things a little differently this time around and I like how it turned out.   
> You can also thank this late update on my friend Ami because they kept enabling me and my headcannons!   
> So a bit of a confession I guess, but this fic is going to get a lot more self-serving (is that the right way to say it? lol) on my end, because I really have to enjoy writing this story and that means doing things my own way even if it doesn't further the plot or anything, so I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!  
> Anyways, I think I have rambled enough!   
> Thank you SO much for your continued engagement with this fic and all your love, it means the world to me!!  
> Also if you want to know more about what goes on with the fic or more about my HC's come follow me on twitter @SkyClimber14 <3


	11. Truffle Pig

Oikawa was blissfully warm. 

He never noticed the impact the cold of his planet had on him until he experienced what it was to be continually wrapped in warmth.  Right now, there was no stiffness in his joints, no tightness to his skin, his breath never stung as frigid air entered his lungs, his nose wasn’t always swinging between painfully dry or constantly running.  It was gross to think about, but it still brought an ache to his chest as the homesickness set in.  His chest felt tight, his breathing shallow even as he dreamed.

He was back home.  The darkness as poignant as ever, a physical reminder of their isolation – abandonment.  And yet they still had a community.  Sure, it wasn’t thriving, but they made it work.  Every one carried their weight, striving for their families, their neighbors, their people.

It reminded Oikawa of the Blue Castle.  Well – without the looming fear of annihilation.

The thought roused him from his dream. 

He blinked his eyes open, taking in the ceiling from where he lay on his back.  As he yawned, he felt a weight pressing hard against his chest.  He looked down to see Iwaizumi wrapped around him.  He was completely flush against him.  His head was tucked just under Oikawa’s jaw, his breath fanning out across his collarbones.  His left arm was flung across the taller man’s chest, holding him firmly in place.  Oikawa held in a chuckle as he felt Iwaizumi’s leg wrap further around his own.

His breathing was deep and steady, marred only by the occasional snore.  Once again, Oikawa wriggled his left arm out from under the man, before he wrapped it around his shoulders.  He allowed a smile to press onto his face as he ran his fingers through the dense hair on his head.  It tickled his neck as Iwaizumi readjusted, smooshing his face into the cusp of Oikawa’s chest and shoulder.

Oikawa, fearing he was about to wake the man, held very still.  But when Iwaizumi continued to move around until he fell still again, he determined it wasn’t him.  Oikawa continued running his hands through his hair before his curiosity got the best of him.  How deep of a sleeper was Iwaizumi?

He gently poked the dense muscle on his shoulder.  There was a soft give, but no rousing of the sleeping man.  He ran his fingers down the length of his arm, feeling each dip and curve of muscle.  When he got to the hand, he pulled up on his finger before releasing it.  The finger dropped under its dead weight before the hand clenched into a fist and Iwaizumi stretched his whole arm out before relaxing once again.

Oikawa tentatively slipped his fingers in between Iwaizumi’s.  A small, soft smile blooming across his face at the secure warmth around his hand.  But he quickly cleared his throat and withdrew his fingers, only for there to be a small catch as Iwaizumi tightened his grip to hold the long fingers in place before relaxing once again.  Oikawa held his breath as he extracted the rest of his fingers.  He moved his attention back to the bulk of the man, his fascination with his hands would have to wait until later.  He ran a singular finger up the tan skin on Iwaizumi’s back.  He was startled by the sharp inhale as the man pushed aggressively away from the finger, breaking most of the contact between their skin. 

Iwaizumi groaned as he slowly blinked his dark eyes open.  Oikawa could see his wide-eyed stare reflected back in them when Iwaizumi looked at him.  Oikawa thought his heart was going to burst when he saw the small smile on Iwaizumi’s face as his eyelashes fluttered against his bicep.

“Mm… Morning.”  The was a deep gravel to his voice as he acknowledged Oikawa.

“Good morning, sleeping beauty.”  Oikawa swooned.  Iwaizumi scoffed.

His hard demeanor was immediately broken as he rested his head back onto Oikawa’s shoulder, “You’re cold.”  He said, obviously still half-asleep.

“And you’re warm.”  Oikawa hummed as he threaded his fingers back through his own hair.

“I guess we’re perfect fer each other, then…”  His voice slurred as he rubbed his cheek along Oikawa’s shoulder.  He paused, lifted his head to look at Oikawa in the eye, there was a look of terror threatening to break through the sleepy gaze.  “Did I say that out loud?”  Without waiting for Oikawa’s response, he popped up out of bed and began his morning routine.

Oikawa let the small smile linger on his face while he climbed out of bed to get ready as well.  The duo walked to the mess hall together before grabbing breakfast and sitting together.  It was like someone had tied a rope around them, that kept them from being too far apart from each other.

 

* * *

 

 

They had finally landed at their destination.  The merchant paid Iwaizumi and the crew set out to find supplies, jobs and any and all sorts of mischief.

The town was gorgeous.  It was set on the edge of a cliff with a small beach around the edge.  Oikawa could see stair pathways carved into the cliff face with people walking up and down them, enjoying the gorgeous white stone.  The town itself was made from a similar white stone as the cliffs; they sloped and grew in size as they progressed higher and higher up the bluff.

Oikawa and Yahaba – who had been told to stick close to the rest of the group were quickly pulled out of their tourist trance by a small child crying.  Their hearts immediately jumped at the sight and they stepped off the main path to ask what was wrong.

The kid stuttered out through his tears that his turtle-duck was missing and he held up a small leather collar with a small pendant.  Oikawa and Yahaba made eye contact, nodding before asking the child if they could see the collar.

Oikawa held it in his hands but didn’t see or feel anything at all.  He shook his head at Yahaba who asked if he could see a feather from the turtle-duck so he knew what color to look for.  The boy nodded earnestly, his tears slowing down at the attention from the two men.  He ran off behind what Oikawa assumed was his house.

When he reappeared, his little baby fists were full of beautiful marbled brown feathers.  He gave a handful to each man and Oikawa had to resist the urge to flinch when the pile of soft feathers shocked him.  He closed his eyes and allowed the vision to wash over him.  His field of vision was moving around frantically, shaking back and forth as he heard the duck squawking.  His head was swimming as he tried to make out any defining features besides the purple of the water and the black of the sand.  _Yay, more sand_.  The vision paused momentarily as the turtle-duck looked down at its back foot to show it tangled in a clump of seaweed.

Oikawa breathed a sigh of relief to see it was unharmed as he pushed the vision from his mind and tucked the feathers in his pocket.

“We are going to go look for your turtle-duck.  Do not worry, we will find it, I promise.”  The boy started crying again as Oikawa pat his head.  He motioned for Yahaba to follow him and the two headed back down towards the beach.  The walk down the stone stairs was a trip of a lifetime. 

The lively purple of the water danced like magic along the white stone.  The rich purple water cast vibrant lights around the docks and against the black sand.  Their shoes barely sunk as they walked along the dense sand.  It looked like it might have been small porous rocks instead of sand. 

They didn’t have to walk far before they heard the aggressive squawking coming from a little bit ahead of them.  They pressed on, jogging lightly.  The little creature was tangled even worse in the seaweed, it was like a vice grip around its small webbed claw.  Its feathered wings and head were fully extended and moving wildly around from its dark blue shell. 

Yahaba moved behind it, quickly grabbing it and holding its wings against itself so it wouldn’t hurt itself while Oikawa cut it loose.  The turtle-duck swung around trying to free itself from Yahaba, but calmed down almost immediately when Oikawa put its collar on.  It was like it knew it was safe and retracted itself into its shell; letting its head rest against Yahaba’s chest.  It looked absolutely exhausted from its battle with the evil, evil seaweed.

The two quickly made their way back to the small boy who screamed and jumped for joy at the return of his friend.  The turtle-duck, seeing its owner, jumped out of Yahaba’s grasp and ran right into the little boy’s open arms.  They held each other for a moment before the boy looked up at them with tears running down his face.  A woman stepped out of the house at the commotion and gasped at the return of the turtle-duck.  She smiled before disappearing into the house; coming back out with a small pouch in her hands.  She motioned the men over and shoved the pouch into Oikawa’s hands.  He opened it to see a few gold coins in it, he looked up at the woman to see her signing at him.  He was at a complete loss as to what she was saying so she turned to Yahaba.  Oikawa caught him moving out of the corner of his eye but he did see the woman’s face light up.  He turned to see Yahaba signing back to her and the two of them held a conversation for a moment before Yahaba turned to Oikawa

“She says we must keep the money, she _refused_ to even consider taking any of it back.”

“Oh… OK.  Can you show me how to say thank you?”  Yahaba nodded before moving his hands.  Oikawa turned back to the woman and repeated the motion with Yahaba and she smiled before motioning the small boy and his turtle-duck inside.  The boy hugged each of the men and Oikawa even felt a small feathered wing rub against his leg as it waddled into the house.

The two waved goodbye as the woman closed the door.

“I am really glad you were here; I would have felt awful if I had not been able to talk to her.”  Oikawa said to Yahaba as they walked.

“That is why we learned different languages when we were training, so we could handle situations like this.”  Yahaba’s methodological approach brought a smile to his face as the two walked.  “She also said there was a lady around the street who could use our help finding something she lost too.  You think we can help her?”

Oikawa looked around the small residential street, “I do not hear Iwaizumi causing any havoc.  I do not see why not.”  Yahaba nodded before leading the way to a small house on the corner of a small side street.

Posted on the door was a small sign stating there was a reward for the return of a missing ring.  The two knocked on the door and were greeted by a stunning young woman.  They explained how they had heard about the woman needing help and she invited them inside.

“Was the ring part of a collection?  Or do you have any other jewelry that you kept near the ring?”  Oikawa asked.  “If I can see something related to it, it will be easier to find the ring.”

The woman eyed them wearily before she spoke, “If I wasn’t at a complete loss for where this ring could be, I wouldn’t even let you inside, but my brother comes back tomorrow and if I don’t have that ring, I can never look him in the eye again!”  The frustration was evident in her voice and she sounded at the end of her rope; Oikawa’s heart immediately broke for her.  She turned around to pull up one of her floorboards and pulled out a small box.  She pulled out a single earring and handed it to Oikawa.  She looked like she half expected him to turn and run with it in his hand.

Oikawa closed his hand around the earring and focused on it.  He heard Yahaba start a conversation with the woman, trying to distract her so she wouldn’t ask too many questions.  Oikawa vaguely heard her reply before he tracked down the ring.

“The ring and earring are all we have left from our grandmother.  The other earring has been gone for as long as I can remember.”

As Oikawa opened his eyes, he held the two locations tightly in his mind, one a strong pull, begging him to follow it, and the other a smaller, quiet pull that seemed to have lost its voice.  He handed the earring back to the woman and nodded to Yahaba, keeping his focus lasered in on the trails.  They nodded to the woman and set off.

The ring, Oikawa felt, was nearby.  The walked around a small area of the town for a few minutes until Oikawa got a better feel for the area.  He was definitely getting closer but he still was not completely sure what he was looking for because the vision was dark.  Looking around, they were in an open field near the top of the cliff.  There were people sitting around on blankets, basking in the warmth provided both by their twin stars and by the warmth coming from the stone itself.  Oikawa could feel it in his boots.

He felt a phantom breeze across his body, but looking around he didn’t see any evidence of wind here.

He groaned as an idea dawned on him.  He pulled Yahaba close to the edge of the cliff.  Lo and behold, just below the cusp of the rockface there was a bird’s nest, and Oikawa was willing to bet that if they pulled it up and looked through it, they would find the ring, and who knows what else.  He turned to Yahaba to see him shrug before Oikawa got down on his stomach and reached around the edge of the rocks.  When Yahaba confirmed that there was nothing currently in the nest, he pulled it up, trying desperately not to damage it.

The nest was a thick mass of intertwined branches, moss, even hair.  Oikawa tersely pulled small pieces of it off until he uncovered the ring.  With it safely in Yahaba’s pocket he went in to see what other treasures he could find. 

After returning the nest to its spot, mostly still intact, the two men walked away with their pouch now full of small lost jewelry.

Oikawa shifted his attention back to the weaker of the two images in his mind, it was obviously from an earring, one he could only assume was the long-lost piece.  It was currently being touted around the very same town in someone’s ear!  Now that he had the ring, he was able to track the earring around the town easier than it was to find the ring.  Or so he hoped.

Oikawa kept toying with the ring, trying to spot similar landmarks, until finally, _finally,_ he saw a woman with a broad hat that he knew must be hiding the earring!  He rustled through the pouch, holding each earring they had found in the nest until he found one with no attachment to it!

He approached the woman, a look of horror on his face.  “Ma’am!  Who has done you such a great disservice as this?”

The woman was completely taken back by Oikawa, but she turned her attention fully to him.  “What are you talking about?”  Her voice sounded refined, he suspected she may be of high standing with how she dressed.

“Why that earring completely clashes with your eyes!  It is a crime of the highest order to compete with your dazzling jewels!”  The woman’s eyes were wide but she slowly reached up to hold the one earring.

“You… You think so?”  Oikawa had absolutely no idea how this was working, he was talking completely out of his ass but it seemed like this woman was genuinely worried about this single earring clashing with her eyes.

“Would I lie to you?” _yes_. “No, of course not!  Now, today is your _lucky_ day, because I have here with me, the _perfect_ earring for you and I have been dying to give it to a woman such as yourself!” 

Her eyes lit up as Oikawa sweet talked his way right into pulling the earring from her ear and putting the new opal in its place.  Yahaba whipped out a mirror, from who knows where, and the woman gasped as she saw the new earring in her ear.  Oikawa pocketed the old earring before basking the woman in praise at the new earring.  She flushed and spun at the flattery before she thanked Oikawa and Yahaba and continued on her way.

Yahaba spun on Oikawa.  “What do you think you are doing?”

“How else did you expect me to get the earring?”

“You tricked that woman!”  He hissed lowly, looking in the direction the woman walked in.

“I did _not_ trick her!  You saw how excited she was at the new earring!”  Oikawa crossed his arms.  “Besides, we need the earring to help that poor lady…”

Yahaba squinted at him before he sighed.  The damage was already done, it’s not like they could get the earring back if they wanted to.   But along those lines, Yahaba made Oikawa return every other piece of jewelry they had pulled from the nest that he could.

This pulled them into a day-long trek around the city.  As they stopped at more and more houses, their small pouch got heavier and heavier as people sang their appreciation to long lost heirlooms or trinkets.  The thought that kept coming back to Oikawa was how that bird had developed such an eye for stealing what people actually valued.  Was that just luck?

The concern in Oikawa’s heart melted away as he and Yahaba returned the ring and the earring to the woman.  She burst into tears at the sight of the ring, but nearly collapsed, clutching the doorframe when Oikawa pulled out the second earring.

The two walked away with a haze in their own eyes as the woman thanked them profusely.  The light of one star had set and the other was closely behind it.  They had been all around the city and yet they had yet to relink with Iwaizumi and the crew.

Oikawa pulled something out of his pocket, it was a thin strip of fabric.

“Please tell me that is not what I think it is.”  Yahaba looked like the weight of the world was on his shoulders.

“If they are going to leave us behind without a word then it falls on us to be the responsible ones, Yahaba!  I do this for the greater good!”  Oikawa puffed his chest and proclaimed to the world.

Yahaba rolled his eyes but nodded for Oikawa to get on with it.

Oikawa pulled the image into his mind.  Iwaizumi, Matsukawa, Kyotani and a few others were sitting around a table with other people Oikawa didn’t know.  He heard them having a conversation and a few of the men had drinks around the table.

He threw the image out of his mind with offense.  “They are at a tavern!  Without us!”

“Was it an inn?”  Yahaba’s voice was cool and collected.

“But they are drinking, laughing and talking without us!”

“Maybe they got us another job.  That was the plan for today, to get a new gig and then stay in the inn for the night.”

“Stop being logical while I am trying to pick a fight!”

“This is not a fight you are going to win, Oikawa.”

“Oh, we will just have to see about _that_!”

Oikawa stomped off in the direction of the inn, Yahaba quietly followed behind.

Oikawa all but kicked the door in, barging in to the small warm great-room.

“Well well well, look what we have here!”  Oikawa strode up to the crew, who went silent at his entry.

“Oh, look who finally decided to show up…”  Iwaizumi’s voice was sharp and irritated.

“Yea, we, uh, had some business to take care of.  I am sure you handled your business as well.”  Oikawa quickly got a series of warning signs from the crew telling him to back off.  It suddenly clicked.  They had not gotten a new job, that explained Iwaizumi’s irritation.

“Looks like we will be staying here a while until we can find a new job.  We don’t have the funds to just move to a new destination all willey nilley.”  Iwaizumi grumbled into his cup.

“What happened with the merchant?  Did he not pay?”

“Oh, he paid.  And then explained he was retiring and didn’t have any more jobs for us.  Said he would put in a word for us but none of his colleagues are in this area right now.”

“Well…  I think I have something that might cheer you right up.”  Oikawa said with a Cheshire grin.  Iwaizumi turned to look at him with a dark glare right before Oikawa dropped the near bursting pouch on the table.  The whole group fell silent.

“Where did you get this.”

“It seems that this town has an affinity for losing things.”

“You _stole_ this?!”  Iwaizumi looked like he was about to blow a gasket.

“What?  No, of course not!  People paid me to find things they lost!”  Oikawa stood back his arms crossed his face still in shock at the accusation.

Iwaizumi slumped.  “Shit… ‘m sorry, I shouldnta snapped at you like that.”  Iwaizumi picked up the pouch, gently pulling it open.

“I know it is not a lot…  But they had to give me gold because I cannot receive Credits.”  Oikawa stated softly.

Iwaizumi scoffed as he put his head in his hands and groaned as he rubbed his palms into his eyes.  He turned in his chair to face Oikawa.  The area under his eyes was red.  Was he about to _cry_?  No, no it must’ve been from rubbing his eyes.

“This was incredibly stupid and you’re a dumbass.”  Oikawa scoffed.  “BUT…  But this is more than anything any of us could have asked for.  Thank you.”

“Do not get all sappy _Iwa_ , I have not even told you the best part yet… I may have found a job for us too… If you are feeling up to it.”  Oikawa smirked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Helllooooo you amazing people! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! It was both a lot of fun and a major pain in my butt! Special thanks to moon_island for inspiring the title! I /hate/ thinking of titles so it was fun to work with that one :)  
> Again thank you so much for your continued support and love!  
> Small note, I'm not sure when the next chapter will be out.. My whole family is going on vacation for the 4th of July so I'm not sure if I will have time to write ;-; I'm sorry I didn't write more in advance to prepare for this.  
> But as always, you can find me on twitter @SkyClimber <3


	12. Chapter 12

             “Captain!  I am _sick_ of this!  When will they just go through with the damn initiation!  They’ve been here long enough.”   Kyotani was laying on the deck, his tattooed arms thrown out to the side as his bare chest soaked in the sunlight.  The crew groaned in unison but that only served to further peak Oikawa’s interest.

             “Initiation?  I’ve already beat all of you at arm wrestling and regular wrestling, I provided for the crew and I’m obviously the most beautiful here so that is a bonus for you all too!”

             The crew groaned even louder.  Iwaizumi huffed before he moved from his spot behind the steering wheel.  “Once we find this place then maybe we can figure that out.  Oikawa are you _sure_ you know where we’re going?”  He leaned against the railing of the upper deck while keeping his hand lazily on the wheel.

             Oikawa rolled his eyes but stretched out in his hammock.  The pull of his muscles pulled a groan out of him as he rolled over to look up at Iwaizumi.  “Have I ever led you astray?”  he lulled.

             “No… but plenty of old sailors’ myths and thugs have.”

             “But he didn’t get the clue from the thugs!  He got it from his little old lady friends!”

             “Hey!  You mind your manners!  And your facts!  I got this map from the back of a man’s pocket when he kicked mud onto Yahaba.”  The crew groaned together.  Oikawa was really starting to feel colluded against!

             “And how are you so sure this is going to work out – us flying all the way out here for nothing?”

             “Stop being so negative, _captain,_ you are going to kill the mood.  Besides you could have given me and Yahaba a surfer, but noooooo.” Oikawa threw himself across his hammock dramatically.  “Just admit you could not possibly let me leave your sight and this will all be over with.”

             Oikawa could only laugh and duck out of the way as an empty bucket was thrown at his head.  He threw a look over his shoulder at Iwaizumi, who just grumbled before returning to his spot behind the wheel.  Oikawa had said it would be faster if Iwaizumi would just let him steer, but Iwaizumi laughed in his face and said not even over his dead body.

             If Iwaizumi wants to play that game, Oikawa is more than willing to step up.  But for now, he had to appease the crew at being brought out on their day off….  Even though it was their captain’s decision, not Oikawa’s.

             Thankfully, their trip so far had been smooth and now everyone was lounging around the ship taking bets about the treasure.  Currently, Oikawa was behind, nearly the whole crew claiming it would be nothing at all.  But Oikawa couldn’t be bothered to care when the sky was alive with color and the purple waters were calling his name.

             Oikawa was currently laying out on a hammock running parallel along the starboard side of the ship.  Looking out across the water he could see fish in the wake of the boat cruising through it.  The light of the two stars glimmered along the waves, casting a hypnotic flare.

             The feeling of the warmth on his skin was cathartic.  Mixing with the light dancing along the water, Oikawa was sent down a tunnel of warm light.  He hummed as he was cocooned in a swirling storm of light and visions.  He took a deep breath before it all faded to black.  Oikawa felt like he was floating in a sea of darkness; everything was calm and serene.  He allowed himself to bask in the calm. 

             There was a ringing in his ears. 

             It grew to crescendo as it mixed with the sound of the waves beating against the ship.  Goosebumps raised on Oikawa’s skin as he thought he heard someone whisper to him through the noise.  There was suddenly a multitude of sounds colliding with the ringing of the waves.  It all joined together and rose until suddenly, right into his right ear.

             “Open your eyes.”  Oikawa twitched at the sound.  His eyes _were_ open!

             The static in his ears grew louder and louder until it popped.

             “Open your eyes.”  The woman’s words passed through his head with crystal clarity.  And so, he did.

             The Darkness erupted with colors and shapes.  Oikawa immediately recognized the ship, cast in tiny specks of different colors of light.  He saw himself, laying in his hammock peacefully; he saw the crew mulling about the deck.  He saw the waves splashing against the rough wood of the ship.

             He saw _everything_.  He soared across the water like a bird, his fingertips skipping along the tips of the waves, shooting tiny specks of water into the sky.  He whipped through the emptiness until he slowed at the island from the treasure map.  He cruised in between the trees, the wake of his movement sending ripples through the very nature of the environment.  He rounded a corner before he saw it.

             Buried down beneath a few feet of dirt, Oikawa could see a mass of different colored dots, forming the shape of a chest! 

             “Ah HA!”  Oikawa snapped upright in his hammock.  Reality slipped back into place as every head on deck whipped around to look at Oikawa after his outburst.

             “You have a nice dream of one of your old lady friends?”  One of the members called, the grease dripping off their insinuation.  The deck was filled with snickers.  Oikawa rolled his eyes, letting their taunts roll off his back, knowing they would all be eating them soon.  He laid back on his hammock with a smug smile on his face.

             Oikawa relaxed as the ship continued moving through the water until he dozed back off.

  

* * *

 

 

             Oikawa awoke to a start as he was suddenly thrown from his hammock.  His eyes snapped open to see the wooden floor of the deck rushing at him; he fell into it with a thump.  He groaned as he sat up to the laughter of the crew.  He picked himself up, his right knee giving a slight pinch, but he ignored it to save face.

             He dusted himself off, turning to face the crew, he immediately recognized the area.  It was exactly as he had seen in his vision.  He was honestly blown by the fact that it was the same.  How could it really be the same?  A sudden commotion took over the deck as another ship was seen rounding the island they were nearing.

             Both ships were tossed into a rush to set up the appropriate greetings to avoid conflict with the newcomers.  As Watari, from the crow’s nest, lifted a flag, he called down that he knew the colors of the other ship.  Iwaizumi quickly climbed the rigging to get a better view.  He howled in excitement as he waved to the approaching brig.

             “It’s Nekoma!”

             The whole crew turned to face Oikawa; a look of, “oh no” on each of their faces.  With the looks on their faces in mind, Oikawa quickly moved around to cover himself up.  Just as he finished tucking his wrapped arms back into his shirt sleeves, the ship pulled up next to them.  Oikawa looked around the crew to gauge their response.

             With smiles on most of the faces; Oikawa relaxed a bit, casting his eyes back to the approaching ship.  They had just dropped their anchor so they held their position a few feet away from the Blue Castle.  A tall man with black hair walked up to the railing.

             “Oh, ho ho what do we have here?”  His voice crossed the gap with crisp clarity.  “It seems as though someone finally decided to bite the bullet and make the trip west!  Although, I distinctly remember you having some harsh words regarding the very people who made the trip before you!”  He was facing in Iwaizumi’s direction.

             “Yea, well there was a change of plans.”

             “It would take more than a change in plans to pull you away from your perfect little maps, sounds like someone had a change of _heart_.”  The tall man had a sneer in his voice, but Oikawa couldn’t tell if it was there on purpose or if he always spoke that way.  “It wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with those two extra bodies I count on your deck now would it?”  Iwaizumi cast a quick eye over Oikawa and Yahaba.  How had this man picked them out so well?  There had to be a close history with this crew.  Iwaizumi let out a rough breath before he invited the man, Kuroo, onto the Blue Castle.

             The two crews quickly began mixing across the two ships as the laughter and excitement picked up.  Oikawa, Yahaba, and Matsukawa were called into the captain’s chambers with Kuroo and a small man with him.  Oikawa looked over the two men.

             Both had sharp features, their presence commanding the small room.  The tall one, Kuroo was striking, to say the least.  His black hair sticking up at odd angles, while his smaller counterpart’s longer hair fell straight down, his roots a deep black that faded out to a pale white at the tips. 

             Kuroo’s glances at Oikawa and Yahaba were short and cursory, while the shorter man couldn’t seem to pull his eyes away from where the wrappings on Oikawa’s arms peaked out from under his sleeve.  Oikawa subtly moved his hands to clasp them behind his back, breaking the line of sight.  The man cast his feline eyes up to meet Oikawa’s before quickly looking away.

             Iwaizumi calmly watched this exchange before moving to embrace Kuroo.  “What are the odds we would find you here?”  He asked jovially, a smile on his face.

             “Well, pretty high I’d say.  We’ve been tracking you since we heard you made the jump west.”  The words rolled smoothly off Kuroo’s tongue.  His words didn’t quite meet up with the friendly look on his face.

             “Why would you be doing that?”

             “Well, we were trying to get a hold of you a few days ago, but you were completely radio silent.  Gone.  Dark.  And then like nothing even happened, you were back and heading in the direction you said you had no intention of going…  So, tell me.  Where did you pick up these stunning crewmates?”  His bright eyes slowly passed over Oikawa and Yahaba.  The room seemed to light up under the gold of his eyes. Oikawa watched as he slowly moved until he was staring right into Iwaizumi’s eyes.

             “Kuroo, knock it off.”  The smaller man grumbled before smacking the taller man’s arm.  That immediately snapped the intensity out of his gaze, and brought his friendly smile back.  It was barely perceptible, but it looked like Iwaizumi slumped in relief.

             Kuroo clicked his tongue before spinning, glancing at the smaller man.  “Kenma~, they know I’m kidding.”  Oikawa’s ears perked up at the name.

             “They’re refugees.  We picked them up on the edge of an old system by complete accident.  They are working with us until we can find a way to get them back to their families.”  The half-truth rolled smoothly through Iwaizumi’s lips.

             Kuroo quirked an eyebrow but decided not to make a comment

             Kenma, on the other hand was more than willing to speak up, “How did their families make it out to the west if they were in an old system?”

             Matsukawa chimed in, “You know how the movement of refugees works…  It’s easier to move to whole new system than it is for an established system to take them in.”  Kenma nodded in understanding.

             “So… Why did you need to get in contact with us?”  Iwaizumi cleared his throat.

             “Well…”  Kuroo began before casting a look over his shoulder at Oikawa and Yahaba, obviously not wanting to say anything in front of them even though Iwaizumi brought them in.  When Oikawa shot a look at his captain, he just shrugged before motioning the two men out of the room.  Oikawa rolled his eyes and made a face, but followed his orders none the less.  Once they had closed the door behind them Yahaba smacked his arm, but Oikawa just laughed at him before they walked into the crew’s quarters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey ya'll! I'm really sorry that this took so long! I went on vacation with my family for a while and then when I got back my work added a whole new level to my workload so I've been working my butt off! On top of that I really didn't enjoy this chapter and I thought of just scrapping the whole thing and starting over but then I would just get stuck again ;-; I had to take a break and write something else before I could even come back to this.  
> Either way! Thank you for your patience and your love with this chapter, I really love and appreciate it. I hope ya'll have an amazing day/night and I'll see you again real soon <3  
> As always, if you want, come find me on twitter @Skyclimber14


	13. Are You There?

             Oikawa was not one to hide how much he disliked being excluded from the meeting.  His frustration was abundantly clear as he anxiously rocked and tossed in his hammock in the crew’s cabin.  It was _torture_!  He couldn’t shake the way Kenma’s eyes had passed knowingly over his bandages.  Did he know they hid more than just his fresh, sensitive skin?  It was like his eyes, paired with Kuroo’s, just looked right into him, as if he should just tell them everything, because it was only a matter of time before they looked hard enough to see it for themselves.

             Oikawa couldn’t take it anymore; he had to be doing _something_. This was a problem he’d always had; being sent to a room and told to wait always set him off, it was significantly worse here, out of the black hole, now that there were actually options to do something!

             He threw himself off the hammock with a grunt.  He nodded to Yahaba who rolled his eyes, used to Oikawa’s insatiable nature.  He followed passively behind the taller man until he caught on to what was happening.

             “Where is it that you think you are going?”  Yahaba all but snapped.  Oikawa had always respected Yahaba’s ability to be forceful and yet retain his air of respect and carefree attitude; like he didn’t really care what you were doing but he was going to make you feel it later regardless.

             “Oh, come _on_ , Shigeru!  There is treasure!”  Oikawa was beaming!  He knew Yahaba wouldn’t be able to resist; a smile blooming on his face when he agreed.  Anyone still on deck was preoccupied with the Nekoma crew, so they had a free shot to climb over the edge and splash down in to the shallow water.

             Oikawa gasped as the water soaked through his pants and boots.  He looked over at Yahaba to see a thrilling smile on his face.  Most of the water on their planet was stagnant, resulting in a quarantine to avoid diseases and pests that may still survive there.

             To be knee deep in crystal clear purple water brought on a fit of giggles between the two.  Oikawa looked at Yahaba wickedly, but Yahaba had a dark look in his eye; daring Oikawa to even try splashing him.

             Yahaba held up his hands slowly, “Just remember, you only have on pain of clothes right now.  I’d hate for something to happen to them.”  Oikawa clicked his tongue at the threat before smiling disarmingly and wading past Yahaba, maybe splashing a bit more that was necessary for the walk.

             They sloshed their way through the shallow water until they made it to the beach, which was the same dark rocks as the town had, but here it seemed like the rocks had been ground much finer by the waves of the sea.  They flopped down on their backs with laughter to dump the accumulated water out of their boots.  Oikawa pulled he soggy wraps off before more sand could get caught in them and irritate his tender skin.  They rolled up their pants to their knees before leaving the boots on a rock to try to dry off.

             As Oikawa had seen in his vision, the island was fairly bare, save for the clusters of trees.  He took in a deep, full, breath, feeling the sea air inflate his lungs.  The air was salty, yet crisp, the warm breeze easily pushing through the light humidity, which clung to his skin.  It felt fresh, a striking difference to the perpetual damp of his home, where the water cycle had all but stopped.

             He released the breath and began leading Yahaba through the island.  Their way was smooth as he had already been led to the exact spot before.

             The men laughed as they raced through the trees, the sand flying around them.  But all too soon, Oikawa was skidding to a halt; the hair on his arms and neck standing on end.  He whirled around, looking closely at his surroundings.  He saw it.

             He backed up a few paces before he ran his hands through the coarse sand.  He moved around, uncertain for a moment before he knelt down and started scooping the sand out of the way.  Yahaba was quick to help and within no time, the top of the chest was uncovered.

             “Sometimes, I really hate when you are right.”  Yahaba groaned as they hauled the chest out of the hole, both grunting under the exertion.  A thought zipped through Oikawa’s mind, “How would Iwaizumi look pulling the chest out?”  he rolled his eyes at himself before he laid his body out across the top of the chest.  How did they get it there in the first place? 

             There were no marks in the sand or anything that showed the chest being drug through the sand.  But Oikawa ignored that in favor of cracking open the chest to see what was inside.  A smile broke out as he looked up at Yahaba.  The shine of the gold was reflected in his eyes.  Oikawa skimmed the gold with his fingers; the small coins clinking and shifting around.  He had absolutely _no_ clue how much this was worth, but he figured that if the small pouch had been enough for a few days’ rest, then this _had_ to be good!  Oh, he couldn’t wait to rub this in the crew’s face!

             Oikawa nodded to Yahaba and they took up the ends of the chest to start the trek back to the ship.

             The sky had darkened, deep clouds covering all the seen sky.  The two shared a quick, concerned look before hoisting the chest and trying to make quick time back to the crew

             A shiver ran up Oikawa’s spine right before there was a loud _CLAP_ somewhere behind them.  “WHAT was that?”  Oikawa yelled over his shoulder.

             “Could it….?  No… I do not know!”  Yahaba yelled back.

             Oikawa was tempted to just leave the chest and come back to it after whatever monster that was behind them left; they were a slow bulky target for anything that might be hungry on this deserted island.

             There was another low grumble along the skyline behind them and the sky had gotten even darker!

             Something tapped Oikawa on the shoulder.  His stomach raising to his throat as he turned to look, but there was nothing there!  There was another tap on his forearm, this time something rolled down his arm.  He turned to face Yahaba, to see him just as bewildered.

             But, just then, when their eyes connected, something fell from the sky, hit Yahaba’s nose and splashed off.  Oikawa’s eyes shot to the sky, but there was nothing above them except black clouds.

             “Is… Is this rain?”  His voice came in short breathy bursts as the smile broke out across his face.  Like his words unlocked the sky, the clouds opened up with a BOOM and the men were suddenly being poured on!

             They dropped the chest and lifted their faces upwards, allowing the thick drops to smack against their cheeks and run down their faces for the first time in their lives.  They broke out in laughter as they tried to swat the water out of the sky at each other, their glee growing until their stomachs hurt from laughter and their cheeks stung from smiling.

             They were soaked from head to toe.  There was not a _single_ part of them that was not wet.  The rain contrasted the heat that they had walked through to get there, their skin covered in goosebumps as they shivered slightly.

             As much as they didn’t want to, it was time to get back to the ship.  It was raining hard enough to completely hide what was in front of them by more than a few feet.  Their forearms burned as they heaved the wet chest back up and waddled back in the direction of the Blue Castle.

             They knew they were getting close when they heard yells slipping through the rush of the rain.  Oikawa thought he could start to see the silhouette of the ship through the curtain of the water.

             They were suddenly met with a new problem.  Oikawa’s foot splashed into the first bit of the purple sea.

             “HEY!  What do you think you are doing?”  Oikawa’s blood ran cold.  It was Iwaizumi, and he did _not_ sound happy to see them.  Oikawa looked up to see they were much closer to the ship than he thought, and with the rain easing slightly, he could make out Iwaizumi perched on the boarder of the boat, anger almost visibly rolling off him.

             “Help us get this chest on board!”  Oikawa called back.

             “Oh no.  No, no, no.  We have been looking for you for over an hour.  You can deal with any issues you’ve brought back with you.”  Iwaizumi’s tone was icy before he turned his back on the two men standing with their feet in the water.  There was a commotion above them before Hanamaki poked his head over the edge of the ship.

             “Don’t mind ‘im.  Bring that thing over to the side of the ship and we’ll hoist it up.”  He waved them away before disappearing again.  Oikawa and Yahaba groaned as they lifted the water logged chest up high with their softening arms before wading out to the ship.

             As they waded deeper, the water had risen so it lapped around their waist.  Oikawa’s shoulder twitched as the weight of the chest settled deep in his back.  As they approached the ship, Hanamaki lowered a small platform that the men dropped the chest down on before their arms gave out.

             “What did you monsters manage to find this time?”  Someone called up as the platform was slowly lifted up the side.  Oikawa and Yahaba scurried up the ladder so they could see the looks on the crew’s face as the chest came into view.

             And boy was it worth it.  The reactions ranged from shock to aggressive cursing as money was being collected for the bets.  However, the reaction was quickly shot down by Iwaizumi coming out on the deck and instructing Oikawa and Yahaba to bring their shit into the office and for everyone to get to work to get them away from the storm.  The crew glanced at them with downcast eyes and Watari scurried over to Oikawa with a small pouch of gold before vanishing to do his tasks.

             Oikawa’s arms and back fussed as he picked up the chest, for hopefully the last time as he walked down the hallway with a growing sense of dread.  As they approached the door, it swung open and Kuroo and Kenma exited.  As they passed each other, Oikawa felt Kuroo clap him on the shoulder.  That only served to set the rock heavier in his stomach.

             The room was dark, only gloomy light coming in through the windows.  The sound of the rain could still be heard smacking into the glass.  “I really can’t take my eyes off you for one second without you going behind my back and getting yourself into shit?”  The icy voice clipped through the chilled air.  They set the chest down before turning to find Iwaizumi with his back to them, facing the wall of maps.  Oikawa quickly noted a new one had been put up on the far west side.

             “I could not just sit still while you were talking.  It was my fault, do not be upset with Yahaba.  I could not let go of my curiosity about the chest.  I had a dream.”

             “Oh, you had a dream.  Well that just makes all of this alright, now don’t it!”  Iwaizumi let out a sharp laugh before standing up and facing them.  He was still only half illuminated; his legs visible as he walked towards them.

             “I think you should be more curious about how we may have someone following us, looking for you.”  The ice in Iwaizumi’s voice seemed to come crashing down as he finally got the words out.  He just sounded exhausted as he ripped into the two men.  “And, of course, when we come look for you to make sure everything is ok, you’re gone.  Did you tell anyone where you’re going?  No.  Leave a note?  No.  Take any other member of the crew with you?  No.  Take the one person who knows as little about this place as you do?  Yes.”  The two men stood still with their heads down as they accepted the berating.  Iwaizumi let out a loud sigh.  “I was _worried_ about you two!”  They were abruptly pulled into a rough hug.  He released them with a huff, “You two are soaked!”

             “Was….  Was that rain?”  Oikawa’s voice was small, but he could see its’ impact was large as Iwaizumi visibly recoiled, like he had been smacked in the face.

             “That was your first-time experiencing rain wasn’t it?”  His eyes were swinging back and forth between Oikawa and Yahaba, both of them nodding shyly.

             “And the beach.  And palm trees.  And thunder.  And finding a buried treasure chest.”  With each word, the tension was forced out of Iwaizumi.  He let out a long breath before slumping and rubbing his face.

             “You’re right…  I shouldn’t expect you to sit cooped up, but next time don’t just go off on your own, it could end much worse than a rainstorm.  Have you opened the chest yet?”  The two men agreed before smiling wickedly.

             Iwaizumi mirrored their expression before kneeling by the chest.  He cracked it open, a groan in the back of his chest.  Gold pieces overflowed out of the open top.  Iwaizumi scoffed as he sifted through the top bit, trying to push it back into the chest.

             A paper slipped through the metal.  The ink was a bold black. The print a clean, easy to read script.

             “Come find me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovelies :) Sorry for the long wait! Life is absolutely hecking crazy right now! But thanks for your patience! the next chapter may take a bit of time as well as I'm preparing to move back to school once again. But thank you so much for your support! I hope you enjoy this chapter! Twitter: @SkyClimber14


	14. Intro: Long Journey

             Iwaizumi, Yahaba, Matsukawa and Hanamaki looked at the paper every way imaginable.  They held it up to light, they poured odd smelling liquids on it, they flipped and folded.  They dumped out the chest to see if there was anything else.  But there was nothing, only a note that read, “Come find me.”  Their final hope was putting it in this machine that Matsukawa had pulled out of storage.

             Well, that is to say it was their second to last hope.  They had kept the paper far away from Oikawa as soon as they read it; the fear of it being a trap to track him gripped their hearts.

             “This could all just be nothing.”  Oikawa moped from the corner of the room where they had stuck him.

             “Shut it, before we tie you to the mast to keep you out of trouble.”  Iwaizumi grumbled as the machine beeped along with the paper in it. 

             There was a knock at the door.  Kuroo poked his head in and when Iwaizumi waved him in, he and Kenma walked in quietly.  Kenma’s eyes passed briefly over the rest of the room before latching onto Oikawa.  The two nodded before the shorter man passed by without a sound.

             “Have you figured anything out?”  Kuroo’s voice was smooth, like velvet, but there was a certain clip to it that seemed to slide right through Oikawa’s mind; it almost made him question if he was really hearing anything at all.

             “No.  There is nothing on this paper other than the ink and there’s nothing remarkable about it.  They say to come find them but they don’t leave a way to find them.”  Iwaizumi faced Kuroo.

             “That’s not entirely true, captain…”  Hanamaki said before looking over at Oikawa, who was doing his best to look pouty.

             “No. No, no, no.  This could all be a trap!”  He turned to look up at Kuroo.  “You said yourself that someone has been tracking us to find Oikawa, so now it makes sense that this could be a trap to lead us right to them.”

             “Well… Not quite.”  Were Kenma’s eyes glowing?  “The people in question following you, are at least a few days behind.  How could they have set up the chest with the map if they haven’t reached this planet, even yet?  And even if they _had_ sent someone ahead to plant the chest and the map, that is a lot of work for the potential for someone else to fall into their trap after-words.  The most logical explanation is that someone else set the chest as incentive for people to try to figure out the message, but it is a filter so people with a certain set of skills could actually succeed.”  He blinked quickly, like there was something in his eyes – they were a distinctly different color when he was done blinking.

             “There you heard it right from the man himself!”  Kuroo clapped Iwaizumi on the shoulder, grabbed the paper and slinked over to Oikawa before slapping it into his hands.

             Oikawa’s brain tickled and itched before there was a strong sensation on his thigh, like a pin had been placed in his skin.  He recoiled from the paper, letting it fall onto the safety of his pants while the sting slowly faded away.  He looked to Iwaizumi, before pointing to the spot on his leg, who glanced over to Kuroo before nodding for Oikawa to continue.  He shrugged before pulling up his pant leg to reveal his blue speckled skin.  Kuroo and Kenma immediately blinked and moved in to look closer while Oikawa worked the cotton up past his thigh.

             “Is that…” 

             “A map?”  Kuroo and Kenma asked.

             “Partially…”  Oikawa said slowly, waiting for Iwaizumi’s nod of approval.  “The note came from here.”  He pointed to a small blue dot on the center of his quad.

             “How – how do you know?”

             “It told me…  I felt it.”  Oikawa could see the gears turning behind their eyes, but there really was no other way to explain it to them, and he was not ready to tell _Iwaizumi_ about his dreams lately, let alone, some strangers.  Kuroo and Kenma exchanged glances before Kuroo turned to face Iwaizumi.  Kenma stayed facing Oikawa, helping him roll his pants back down with soft hands before whispering a soft, “Thank you.”

             “You should follow the paper.”  Again, his mellow voice was definitely there and Oikawa _heard_ it… Right?

             “You recognize the spot?”  Iwaizumi questioned.

             “No.  But we also don’t think that is where the person hunting you is.  You should be safe.”  Iwaizumi let out a deep sigh and it seemed like his whole body released the tension he was holding there.  He nodded slowly before clapping Kuroo on the shoulder. 

             Kuroo suddenly exploded with laughter, picked up Kenma by his waist and threw him over his shoulder!  Kenma for his part, did little to fight back, his body limp and supple against Kuroo, but his face a flash of disgust and embarrassment.  His eyes met with Oikawa’s and he gave a soft wave before he was bounded out of the room.

             And with that….  They were gone.  Within a few minutes of the captain hauling his helmsman out, off the Blue Castle, their ship had cast off from theirs and was heading off on their own back to the town. 

             Nekoma’s coming and going was like a whirlwind; however, it seemed like they came out on the upside of it.  They knew now that they were being hunted, but they had the money they needed to support them for a while, which was an advantage to them.  Hopefully.  Oikawa couldn’t help but hope, maybe, just maybe, this person who had left them a map may know something about the prophecy, or at least be able to help them somehow.

             Iwaizumi whipped the crew back into shape quickly setting them in a different direction from Nekoma.  He walked back into his office heavily, slumping next to Oikawa against the wall.

             Oikawa felt a strange tightness to his body with Iwaizumi’s close proximity.  This just conflicted with him – Iwaizumi had been much closer to him before – they’d shared a bed!  And yet, here he was fidgeting like a child while Iwaizumi was obviously mulling over what to say.

             But what would he want to talk about?  The past?  The future?  Oikawa barely knew the man sitting next to him and yet he had decided he was completely worthy of his trust and that never wavered.  Oikawa felt that he couldn’t leave Iwaizumi, not that he wanted to, but things just felt right with him and the crew.  His feelings were curious but he wasn’t sure he was ready to dive too deep into them, not sure what they would bring up.  They were being followed, maybe hunted.  Now was not the time for Oikawa to try to decide if there was something more to his feelings than just admiration and respect for the Captain.

             “Can I see?”  Iwaizumi’s voice was firm yet soft around the edges.

             Oikawa exhaled the breath he had been holding in, slowly feeling the tension rolling out of his body as Iwaizumi patiently waited.  Oikawa tried to hide his shaking fingers as he moved down his leg to pull his pant leg back up.  The thought was preposterous all of a sudden.  Oikawa moved just to pull his pants off, his long shirt still coming down to cover his under shorts.  He heard Iwaizumi’s breath catch before he cleared his throat and handed Oikawa the paper back.  Once again, his thigh twitched and Oikawa pointed to the small blue spec before handing the paper back to Iwaizumi.  Iwaizumi held his stare for a moment before dropping his eyes to the spot high on his thigh.  His eyebrows crinkled together before he slowly got up from his seat, extending his hand to Oikawa before leading him to sit in the chair facing the wall of maps.  Iwaizumi tapped a panel of the wall and with a flash, the maps were illuminated in perfect clarity. 

             Oikawa blinked against the brightness, settling himself into watching Iwaizumi move around the face of the wall looking for something that matched Oikawa’s leg.

             They sat there for a while as the ship moved gently through the water, Iwaizumi moving gracefully through the space looking between Oikawa’s leg and the wall.  It was mostly quiet, the room tangibly full of thoughts.  The frustration was mounting once again as he was left to sit there and watch because he didn’t have the knowledge he needed to fully help Iwaizumi.  It made his blood boil.  Was all he was, all he was ever going to be, someone to be stripped of his humanity for the sake of being a perfect map?

             And yet… Even though that would be the easy approach to him, because no one truly wants to take the hard road to learn the person beyond their appearance.  Even still, whenever Iwaizumi came back over to look at him, he always met his eyes first, there was a look of apology in his eyes.  As if he felt bad for using Oikawa as he felt like he was being used.

             Did Iwaizumi know what it was like?  Well, obviously not exactly like what he was feeling, but that empathy in his eyes was so, real…  There had to be something behind it, right?  Was that one of the reasons he felt such an immediate sense of comradery, like he had known this man for his whole life, trusted him like they had this cosmic life before, that he was somehow missing out on?

             This conspiracy kept growing in his mind.  How else would you explain everything that had happened to them so far?  That Iwaizumi and his crew crashed onto his planet after getting sucked into his black hole.  They landed close enough to be able to find the city without extensive searching or loss.  The Council handed himself and Yahaba over without much thought or warning.  Did they know more than they had let on?  How had Oikawa, on his first attempt, gotten them out of the black hole, thus securing his position next to Iwaizumi?  Even when Iwaizumi left him to his own devices, there was no second thought, no hesitation to go back to him, even when they had the means to find someone else to travel with.

             What was the meaning of all of this?  How had it gone so naturally that Oikawa did not even think to question it?  Was this the right thing?  It must be… Right? 

             The council obviously thought so…  Iwaizumi himself had not raised any concerns about their closeness, neither had any of the crew, as far as he knew.  Was it just because he was steadily bringing in more and more income for them that they were willing to overlook the circumstances of the relationship of their Captain and some walking trouble bringer?

             He paused at that.  Where had the thought that he was a trouble bringer come from?  Did he really think that?  But the more he tried to think about that thought, it slipped through his fingers like sand, leaving nothing but a sense of invasion.

             The bright lights on the wall were making his eyes water, he quickly blinked it away and tried to refocus on Iwaizumi, only to see he wasn’t in front of him anymore.  He jumped up from the chair, long legs stretching out as he reached the door to the hallway.  He whipped it open to see a startled Iwaizumi on the other side – holding two glasses of water, with books tucked under each arm.  His eyes were wide and he stood his ground, delicately balancing the water.  Oikawa reached out to grab the water from him and he grunted his thanks.

             “You ok?  You zoned out pretty hard there.”  He nodded to the water as he walked in and set his books on the desk, “Drink that.”  He dropped down into the plush captain’s chair before rubbing his face and opening the two books side by side.

             Oikawa felt the cold, smooth water flowing down his rough throat, suddenly becoming aware of just how thirsty he was.  He quickly downed the first glass, reaching for the second, glimpsing a small pleased smile on Iwaizumi’s lips.  He leaned against the back of his captain’s chair, one arm draped lazily to the side, brushing against Iwaizumi’s arm while he looked over his shoulder at the books, sipping his water.

             They stayed like this long into the night, talking, comparing ideas, trying to figure out the best course of action since Iwaizumi had found what he thought might have the location from Oikawa’s leg.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeeellllllooo Im back! Ya'll so much has happened all at once! I'm no longer working full time but I moved back to school, which thankfully has a nice schedule so I will hopefully be able to write a lot more now! Thank you so much for your patience, I really just needed some time off to get my life a bit more under control!   
> Thanks again for reading! Your support means the world to me!
> 
> If you ever wanna know what I'm up to come find me on twitter @SkyClimber14 and shoot me a message or whatever you want :) I'd love to talk to any of yall!


	15. Into the Unknown

The ship flowed smoothly through the empty space, the distant stars standing resolute in the distance, while the closer ones zipped by.  Oikawa watched with rapt attention while the stars and space dust warped in and out of his field of vision.

             His hammock swayed under the movement of the ship – the crew was more than happy to set it up for him after they set off.  They wanted peace and quiet as much as he did, and this way they figured they wouldn’t have to worry about him going stir crazy on the trip if he could be as out in the open as possible.

             Oikawa’s dreams were vivid on this trip, but they left him as soon as he woke.  He remembered the bright flashes, but then it was gone, not even a sense of what was.  At one point he awoke with a faint stick of sweat to his skin, and yet as soon as he woke up, his heart was calm and his breathing was normal.

             This was only the beginning of weird occurrences happening on the ship.  The more they moved closer to their warp point, the more his skin itched.  There wasn’t any change to the map, nor was his skin still healing from the burn.  It felt like his skin and the back of his mind were vibrating with excitement, yet there was no real stimulation.  He was just laying there, same as always and yet, something in him was building to a roaring crescendo.

             The jump through the warp point was smooth, no traffic.  The jump was short, one minute, Oikawa was looking at a set of stars, and the next he was looking at something completely different.  He whipped around to look at the deck but, the crew was mulling about normally.  Hanamaki and Matsukawa were up in the crow’s nest, their laughter would come cracking down on the deck like thunder. 

             The crew returned to their usual posts as they neared the zone of the planet.  The itching on his thigh reached a peak and he scurried inside to take a look.  He groaned as he called for Iwaizumi.  A small meeting was held to discuss their options.  The planet, according to Oikawa had been swallowed by a black hole, Matsukawa was still working to broaden their sensors to try to find it.  They had made it out of Oikawa’s black hole just fine, but willingly entering one blind was a whole different bag of bones.  Eventually, the crew agreed to follow Oikawa, and they set their course towards dark – empty space.

 

* * *

 

 

             The entry into the black hole was unlike anything Oikawa had ever experienced.  Whereas coming out of the black hole felt like being smashed into the deck, going in was like floating into a large pool of water.  There was a moment of freefall before the universe reorganized itself around them.  He blinked his eyes back open, not realizing they had fallen closed.

             He thought he knew what to expect and, as it always seems, he was wrong.  The Blue Castle, had turned on its lights at the front of the ship to illuminate their way through the darkness.  The air here was crisp and cool, a gentle fog seemed to fill the whole space, slightly screening the planet that sat at what appeared to be the very center of the maelstrom around it.  Oikawa had never heard of wind or movement inside a black hole, and yet, if he didn’t know any better, he would have thought they were still out in the open.

             The ship cut through the mist, cruising towards the growing planet.  As they got closer, the crew felt a knot growing in their stomach as the details became clearer and clearer.  Something was very wrong here.

             The planet, if it could still be called that, no longer held the traditional shape of a planet that is constantly buffeted by space dust and meteors.  Instead, it looked like it had collided with another large body, fragmented into segments, but then immediately got swallowed whole into the black hole.  The planetary fragments stood as if suspended by strings, gently hovering near each other, but still with miles and miles between each piece.

             But that was only the first of the oddities that became apparent.  Every visible inch of all of the fragments was covered in foliage.  As they grew closer, the larger pieces billowed in the wind.  The ship rounded the cluster, on the look-out for anything, or even any place where they could land.  Oikawa was sure there was nothing more that could surprise him more than he had already seen, but as they crested a large, what he assumed to be a, mountain that teetered on the very edge of the abyss, one of the most magical things he had ever seen came into view.  A waterfall.

             It towered over the rest of the fragments, its bright blue waters illuminating the land around it, as if it had a spotlight shining through it.  Oikawa followed the trail of water, from where it seemed to just appear, at the peak of the mountain, down the falls to where it crashed down into a pool of more illuminated water.  It became clear why there was so much mist.  The planet didn’t have a strong enough gravitational pull to hold the spray of water in at the ground.  From there, the water twisted and turned until it too fell off the edge of the fragment, the spray of water resulting splashed down on a few other smaller fragments, but most of it just dispersed into the air. 

             Oikawa, taking a breath, felt the water in his lungs, his hair clung to his skin while his shirt and pants drooped under the moisture.  But it felt clean, which blew his mind.  The water cycle remained although it was drastically different here.  He was willing to bet if they dropped the ship’s artificial atmosphere, even this far away from the planet, they would be alright.  The oxygen was produced by the plants down on the ground and the water served both as a cleanser and a transporter for it without drowning the lungs.

             Oikawa looked over to see the crew buzzing around the deck, they all seemed just as anxious about this as he was, but still they continued moving around the area until they saw it.  Just on the other edge of the mountain, was a clearing greater in size than their own ship, but greater even still of most ships.  And just below that, sat a small series of huts, each one covered in greenery, they almost blended in, but Hanamaki called them out clear as day.  Within a minute, Matsukawa had stormed up from his station, the ship eased to a stop, yelling at the top of his lungs for Hanamaki to stop talking nonsense and do his job!  Hanamaki snapped down at him, leaning over the edge of the crow’s nest, yelling for him to climb up there and use his damn eyes and look for himself if he wasn’t going to trust him.  Apparently, from his screens, Matsukawa wasn’t able to see the clearing or the buildings that Hanamaki had called out, so to him it all sounded like a trick.  The crew all seemed to be in agreement that this was not the time for jokes, this place wasn’t like anything they had ever experiences before.

             The two snapped a few more snide remarks back at each other before Iwaizumi called Matsukawa back to work with a quick command.  He pulled a face at Hanamaki before slinking back into the hull.  Hanamaki, not wanting to be on the other end of Iwaizumi, kept his call outs clear and concise, and Oikawa watched with wide eyes as the two worked in perfect sync to safely maneuver the ship to land delicately into the clearing.

             Oikawa, moving towards the edge of the ship, was stopped by an arm across his chest.  He looked over to see Kyotani scowling up at him.  The scowl was immediately ripped off his face as Yahaba stepped solidly in between them, his cold, steel, face immediately setting Kyotani back on his heels.  He looked about to say something when Iwaizumi walked up in front of the crew and began giving out directions.  Kindaichi, Kunimi, and Matsukawa would stay on the ship, keeping it prepped in case they needed to make a quick exit.  Watari, and Kyotani would get on the gliders and continue scouting the area.  Iwaizumi, Hanamaki, Yahaba, and Oikawa were going to go check out the cottages.

             The four of them hopped down the ladder, their boots sinking into the moss covering the ground.  Now, outside of the ship, the fresh, crisp wetness of the air was hitting them in full force.  Oikawa’s skin raised in goosebumps as the mist wrapped wholly around them.  His mind racing as, now that they were out of the range of the lights from the ship, he was able to see that it wasn’t just the water that seemed to be backlit.  The plants all around them were giving off their own faint light.  The light would have been completely missed if they were anywhere else, but with the pitch-black darkness, the individual tiny points of light came together to perfectly illuminate the area around them.  Oikawa looked around, seeing his shock perfectly mirrored in the eyes of the others.

             This whole thing was just…. Wrong.  From the note, to the black hole to all of _this_!  A knot was forming in Oikawa’s chest as they kept walking in the direction of the small buildings.  Iwaizumi groaned as they got closer.  Of course, of course the buildings were bigger than they looked from the ship!  From the top, the buildings looked like four separate buildings with flat ground between them.  But the reality of it was that it was all one building, with a courtyard and breezeways in the area between the four sections.

             All of the men, growing tense under the unknown  walked the perimeter of the compound, but there was no entrance into the buildings, only breezeways.  When they had made their way back around, they walked in between the two buildings into the courtyard in the center.  Oikawa scoffed as they approached a running fountain in the center.

             “There.”  Hanamaki’s voice slipped through the silence, the group turned to look at where he was pointing.  Set solidly into the rough wall of the building stood a single door, with two lanterns illuminating it from the sides.  They blinked back against the light as they approached.  They all looked at each other before Oikawa moved to knock on the door.  Before his hand could even touch the wood, a woman’s voice slipped through their ears.

             “No need to knock.  Come right in.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Ya'll! Sorry for the late and small update but, in case you didn't know, or couldn't tell from my use of "Ya'll" I'm from the south east of the US. We've been under hurricane threat for most of the week. Thankfully, myself, my family and my home is ok, but I wasn't able to get much work done! I figured having this smaller chapter was worth more than waiting another week or so for a full chapter!   
> Anyways! Thank you for your continued support! I hope you like this chapter! As always, come find me on twitter @SkyClimber14 :)  
> P.S. Next chapter should be pretty long and I'm excited for it! It was originally going to be in with this chapter but then the hurricane just had to come and mess it all up!


	16. Pied Piper

              The room was suspiciously larger than it should have been.  The walls, a rough stone, stretched further than the width of the ship, even though the whole outside couldn’t have been larger than the ship itself.  Oikawa thought it might have something to do with the lights, they sat in the middle of the far wall and cast their light barely an arms-span from the source.  The light slipping in through the door behind them mixed in, giving them a faint image of the room. 

             The furniture took up the majority of the room, it was dark material, clustered around itself.  The structures looked like they almost made a maze through themselves.  Oikawa looked around to make sure his companions were still there with him, a slice of fear that they might somehow have ended up somewhere else.  But to his relief, they were there right next to him.

             “Everyone here?”  It felt like all of Oikawa’s training came flooding back to him in his moment of fear.  He felt himself fall in line with Yahaba, who must have felt the same.  There were a few accenting grunts before a low whisper.  And a hand reached out to grasp his arm, he looked up to see Hanamaki, his face washed out.

             “I can’t see jack _shit!_ Who’s this I’m holdin’?”  A wicked smile spread on Oikawa’s face, and not even the disapproving look on Yahaba’s face could dissuade him; he bent slightly, reached down low and slapped his hand across Hanamaki’s calf.  The hand on his arm closed in a vice as the man jumped in the air, a scream blown out of his lungs.  His hands moved up to Oikawa’s lapels as he kept jumping in terror.  His hand slid up Oikawa’s face, feeling his features as Oikawa couldn’t wipe the smile off his face.  Hanamaki’s grip tightened as he shook Oikawa, “Oikawa!  I am gunna killya!”  The whisper slipped out of his lips before a firm hand made contact with the back of both their heads, their foreheads slapping together.

             They hissed quietly as Iwaizumi scolded them.  “Cut it out!  Hanamaki go back to the ship and bring us some lights, so we can find the door.”

             “Wait….  The door is right there.”  Oikawa and Yahaba whispered almost at the same time.

             “Can you two see in here?”

             “More than Hanamaki.”  Oikawa snickered, earning him another slap, this time from Yahaba.  He shrugged it off before they grouped up and Oikawa and Yahaba led them through the maze.  As they progressed further, Oikawa noted that this was more than just a maze.  It was a trap.  Littered around the floor were holes that lead into pitch blackness like Oikawa had never seen before.  Other places were innocuous spikes or barbs.  The kept tight, not allowing any room for error in here.  Yahaba and Oikawa, led them through, quietly whispering instructions as they passed through the door with little more than a scratched ankle.

             They flitted through the short hallway before moving into the next room, this one even darker than the first.  The two men squinted around before Yahaba gave up and moved a step behind Oikawa, giving him the lead.  There was a mumble behind Oikawa, coming from Hanamaki about trusting him, he felt Iwaizumi shrug in response.  What else was there to do?  Iwaizumi then gave Oikawa the go ahead to move in deeper into the room.  This one seemed like a simple repetition from the previous room, only the walk way was narrower and Oikawa could not begin to guess what was lurking off the path.  The going was slow, filled with hesitation and second guessing as Oikawa tried to stay five steps ahead mentally.

             The group breathed a sigh of relief as their bodies untensed as they walked into the hallway at the end of the room.  They each sat down on the floor, resting against the wall, their breath thick and heavy in the humidity.  Suddenly, Oikawa was punched in the shoulder, he yelped at the contact, his hand coming up to cup his shoulder.

             “Yous one crazy mother-“ Hanamaki’s voice cut through the darkness.

             “Maki!”  Iwaizumi curtly cut him off.

             “Whaaaat?  You think it’s normal he can lead us through that?”  Hanamaki whined.

             “What even is normal anymore?  You’ve been out here with me since the beginning, we’ve seen all types of people and places.  How is he that different?”  Iwaizumi huffed.

             “Because at least when people are different from me, I can see it with my eyes!  But he looked like us, talks like us, walks like us but he is not the same as us.”

             “Is that so bad?”  Oikawa asked quietly.

             He heard Hanamaki take a deep breath before groaning.  “No.  No of course not.  My job has always been to use my eyes as a weapon.  And here you come, forcing me to look beyond what I can see, not just about you but as the world as I know it. Is a lot to take in, ya know?”

             “Yea.  We know how it feels to have the rug pulled out from under you.”  Oikawa shifted around, trying to look into the next room.  “Have either of you ever seen anything like this place?”

             “No.”  Iwaizumi’s response was quick and concise.

             “Well…”  Hanamaki hummed, instantly grabbing everyone’s attention.  “Why’re you lot looking at me like that?”  he groaned.  “This is usually Matsu’s area, but I’ll try…  In the legends surrounding the Birds’ there’s subtle hints towards ‘thriving darkness.’  No one knew what it meant, but people thought maybe it had something to do with those black holes. Of course, no one was willing to test their theories, it was always just grasping at straws.  But naturally, e’eryone, the rare ones, who came out of black holes, always talked about how barren and decrepit they were that people started moving away from that idea.”  The group was transfixed.

             “Well, if we’re going to find something out, this feels like the place to do it.”  Oikawa spoke as he felt a shiver creep up his back.

             Iwaizumi huffed before slapping his knees and standing up, “Let’s get a move on.”  Oikawa’s knees popped as he stood, he hid his hiss, before moving back to the front of the group.  Oikawa noted quickly that this room was not like the others.

             The third room was completely empty, light filtered into it through the next doorway.  This room, seemingly innocuous, raised Oikawa’s hairs on end.  Yahaba moved to step into the room but Oikawa stretched out his arm to stop him.

             “This does not make sense.  Everything so far has been a test.  Why would this last bit just let us go?”  The other men pressed in close, but were careful not to pass the threshold, looking for anything that stood out in the room.

             “Do you…  I dunno, feel anything?”  Iwaizumi’s hot breath ruffled the hair by his ear.

             “… I do not think so.”  Oikawa replied before a thought crossed his mind.  There was no way that could work…  Right?  Oikawa bent over, pushing the other men back in the process.  He pulled his boots off and held them in his hands.  He lifted his foot, moving to take a step into the room.  He hovered for a moment before setting his foot down.  There was a collective sigh of relief when everything remained calm.  Iwaizumi moved to take a step, but Oikawa pushed him back.  He took one of his shoes and reached out to the side.  He leaned over, stretching as far as he could and rested the sole of his shoe against the wood floor.  Within an instant, it was ripped from his hands and disappeared into the floor.  He stretched to look at his comrades with wide eyes.

             “O-okay then.  Single-file class.”  Hanamaki quipped.  Oikawa forced himself to take a breath, knowing he needed to be fully in the moment, rather than steps ahead in his mind.  When they gave him the signal, they began their painstakingly slow movement across the floor.  They weaved to-and-fro, across the room.  Like a dance, Oikawa fell into a rhythm, feeling the push and pull of the floor.  Both before he knew it, and after what felt like an eternity, the group arrived at the other hallway and Oikawa was only aware of it once he was being slapped on the shoulders and his head pulled down into a noogie.

             He slumped against the wall, his body sagging under an immense weight.

             “Hey, you ok?”  Iwaizumi’s face sprang into Oikawa’s wavering field of vision.  He closed his eyes, nodding slowly.

             “I just need a moment.”

             “We have been here a while, we need to get some intel and head back to the ship,” Hanamaki pressed.

             “What is a moment in the grand scheme of the universe?”  For the first time, it felt like Oikawa was actually hearing the woman’s voice with his own two ears.  It was like taking a breath a fresh air.  He popped up, his long strides carrying him into the next room.

             The room made his head spin.  It was infinitely larger than it should have been.  It looked like an entire house fit into one single room.  There was a sleeping area, a kitchen, bookshelves set with a plush chair and assorted furniture set elsewhere around the room.

             But none of that mattered when his eyes latched onto a young woman sitting in front of a hearth in the very center of the room.  The light of the low fire illuminating her.  She had dark hair and dazzlingly dark eyes.  Her lips were curled into a gentle smile, it reached her eyes, pulling them gently.  Her body was young and yet she sat there with the patience of an elder.

             The others moved in quickly, stopping transfixed by the woman.  Her eyes traveled over them, but they remained on Oikawa, who stood with his mouth still agape.

             “Welcome.  I see you found my chest – my letter.”  Her voice raised goosebumps along his skin.  His eyes longed to lull closed, for him to just lay down and rest his head in her lap.

             “Who are you?”  The question rolled out of him before he could stop it.

             She chuckled, not at all put off by his question, “You seem tired.  Come.  Sit.  I will tell you everything you want to know.”  Her voice was hypnotic.  Oikawa didn’t know he had taken a step towards her until Iwaizumi was grabbing his arm, sending him a warning look.

             “Are you sure about this?”  He whispered, glancing over at the woman, who seemed nonplussed by their whispering.

             “I think…  I think I know her.”  Iwaizumi groaned, before rolling his eyes, as if saying of course you do.  But he released him none the less, allowing the group to move towards the stunning woman.  Oikawa blinked.  There were now five cups of steaming tea set around the hearth.

             Everyone sat down across the pit from the woman.  “Now then.  You want to know who I am?”

             “Yes.”  Oikawa’s voice coming out as nothing more than a breath.

             “My name is Kiyoko Shimizu.  And I, like you, and touched by the Darkness.”  She nodded to Oikawa as she spoke.  “And, this is my home.  I am here alone, but I do not mind.”

             “And… You have been talking to me?  Through my dreams?”

             “I suppose I have been.  You have been right on the edge all this time; you just needed a small _push._ ”

             “So close to what?”  The rest of the group was silent, taking in this bizarre encounter.

             “To seeing in the Darkness, silly.”  Her voice was light, but her face turned as she saw the confused looks from her audience.  “Are you not aware of what has happened to you?  Of your legacy?”  She took a deep breath as she took in their stares.  “Oh my.  We will need more tea for this.”  She quickly downed her cup before standing up to grab something from the cupboard.  She set another pot to the hearth.

             “Long ago, before anything existed, there was Darkness.  It was whole, and it reveled in its connectedness.  But along came Light.  It started small, and it was also complete.  It grew steadily – as things do.  But then, it grew rapidly, and, because it lacked the foundation of the Darkness, it shattered.  The Light, without its unity, grew untamed.  It spread wildly, bits and pieces across the known galaxies.  It became erratic, sputtering in and out of existence, wreaking havoc on its inhabitances.  And in all of this, it grew a great jealousy for the Darkness, which had, even through all of the Light’s expansion, maintained its solidarity.  The Darkness knew itself, knew its creatures.  It held an intimate embrace with itself.  The Light craved this, craved a stability in its’ chaos, but there was no way. 

             So, the Light continues its rampage of rapid existences.  Meanwhile, the Darkness sits quietly, contently, occasionally taking pity on those tossed aside from the Light.  But now, the legacy of the Light burns brighter than that of the soft caress of the Darkness.  People of the Light use it without knowing, flying in between blips of light, not acknowledging to what they owe their safety.

             And here we are.  Two creatures of the Light, walked here like babies in a carriage, two touched fully by the darkness, and one… who is lost.”  Kiyoko nodded to each of the men, hesitating slightly with Yahaba. 

             Oikawa’s mind was a full whirlpool.  The first thought that stuck, came out, “But… Our planet was swallowed by a black hole while it was in its prime.  How is that the Darkness taking pity on us?”

             “You say you were at your prime, but how is your star now?”  Her soft voice carried no maliciousness, only the intent to teach.  Oikawa looked to Iwaizumi for an answer.

             “When we were there, there were warnings of major solar flares.  That star will not last for much longer.”  His voice was shaken as he recalled.

             “But our planet has suffered beyond anything it has ever known.”

             “I can see it in your companion’s eyes, and in the fact that you are the only one who has been fully touched; you reject the Darkness.  You try to live in it as you lived in the Light.  But the two are exclusive.  If you allow it, the Darkness will provide for you, as it has for me.  There is no hybrid that will exist, not fully.  One must embrace the change for it to occur.”  The words, despite their gentle production, were a smack in the face to Oikawa.

             “So… What of the prophecy?  I am supposed to return the planet to Light.”  Oikawa was breathless.

             “Probably nothing more than someone recalling the old knowledge.  You are fully of the Darkness.  There is no question of that, and yet…  You are not some mythical being of infinite power.  Often times, the people of the Darkness are misunderstood.  They, like you, can look just as their Light counterparts, and yet have the stability of the Darkness, the _totality_ , to back them up.  It is obvious by now that you are beginning to realize the depth of the Darkness, or else you never would have made it to this planet, let alone here to me.”

             “So, there is no way to save my people?!”  Oikawa was desperate now.

             “Quite the opposite.  There are many paths you may take, though, I see only one that you will.  You may choose to save your people by convincing them to give up their dreams of the Light.  Let them fall wholly into the open arms of the Darkness.  You, of the Darkness, may also bargain for the lives of your people.”

             “Bargain?”

             “The Darkness wants for nothing.  It has everything in itself.  So, I suppose ‘bargain’ is no longer the appropriate term for your case.  But you must go to the Darkness, fully accepting and fully embracing it.  Accept your position as one and It will listen to you.”

             Oikawa’s mind was spinning.  How?  How.  His breath was coming in quick, darkness closing in on the edges of his vision.  He was ready to fight anyone to bring his people peace, and yet how does one kill the immortal Darkness?

             “I know what you are thinking.  You think the Darkness is responsible for your peoples’ struggles and suffering.  But it is the Light who deserves your vitriol.  It breeds venom and a loyalty to itself to people completely unknown.  Look around you here.  There is nothing but caring nurture.  You will find countless places like this across the cosmos, with thriving communities and civilizations, but no one of the Light knows them because it is kept quiet; it would incite rebellion.  The Darkness knows this, and because It wants nothing It keeps quiet, allowing the people to come and go how they desire.  You know this.  I can see it in your heart.”

             Oikawa felt his strength failing him.  He swayed, Iwaizumi catching him against himself.

             “What is happening to him?  What did you do?”  He snapped, his voice shaking Oikawa like a leaf in the wind.

             “His body is reconciling the truth that it knows.  If he just lets it free, he will recover.  Let the Darkness sustain him.”

             Oikawa was shaking now, his forehead breaking into a feverish sweat.

             “Do something to help him!”  He heard them cry.  He slumped further against Iwaizumi.  “You’ve told us this much but that doesn’t help right now!”

             “He needs to evaluate this in his own heart.”  The woman’s calm voice washed over him like a wave.  She was right, he needed to stop resisting.  He had been trying so hard to be his own person and fit in with the crew.  While it never felt wrong, it never clicked.  The burn should have been image enough, he was out of his element.  None of them burned, Yahaba didn’t burn.  The Light burned.  The oxygen It provided burned.  But that burning was necessary.  Could he have both?  Could he accept himself as what he is while living out there?  The crew had already accommodated him so far.  They had seen a wide breed of people, how different could it be for him to be different, like Hanamaki said?

             “You burn too bright.”   A deep voice slipped into his mind.  It pushed everything else away.  His body relaxed instantly.  He felt himself slip softly against Iwaizumi’s lap.  His breathing evened out.  How could words have such an effect?  Like the gentle caress of a loved one on his cheek, it sucked the resistance right out of him.  He was nowhere and everywhere all at once.  Pure Darkness.

             “What do you mean?  I am trying as much as I can to do what I was born to do.”

             “Were you born to do it?”

             “Yes.  To save my people.”

             “Your people want what they do not understand.  They teach you half-truths.”

             “How do I make them understand?”

             “You think too much like the Light.  You force your will on others without regard for the outcome.”

             “Regard of the outcome?  You took our home without warning or preparation.  Did you know how many people you would kill?”

             “How many it would kill?  How many would you kill on your own?  It is an infection.  This greed and violence to achieve what you seek.”

             “How else is anything achieved?  Nothing can be gained without someone losing something.”

             “There are many things lost that can be taken without consequence.  They are nestled and waiting eagerly to achieve their goal of serving their function.  But those people leave them there, forgotten.  They could be comfortable if they were not touched by the Light.  You know this.  You have brought them back to the Light, restored them.  Nothing was taken from anyone; only returned.”

             “But I was not thinking like that when I did.  I did not know what I know now.”

             “Would you take back the joy you brought to those people for the sake of your own feelings?  Did you think about some innocent person who could have come by and found the treasure before you took it?  Or did you return it because that is the desire you felt, both from yourself and the thing itself?  Where did the knowledge of those desires come from?”

             “From wanting to help, of course.”

             “And where did _that_ desire come from?”

             “From my nature, my upbringing.”

             “How many other people did you see around helping that small child, or the widows?  They sit around, not being acknowledged, praying to the Light without answer.”

             “But I helped them.”

             “Yes, because you are of the Darkness.  The Comfort.”

             “Iwaizumi and his crew are helping.”

             “But do they do it without expecting a reward?  They see your connection to all things, the past and future.  Were they with you when you restored those things?  What were they doing before you came along?”

             “They are not abusing me.”

             “Of course not.  That is not who they are.”

             “So, then who am I?”

             “You are you.”

             “And what of you?”

             “You hold all authority over yourself, but your inclinations towards things, the curiosity, the comfort.  But that is the way with all things, as you know.”

             “So, what does this mean?”

             “Whatever you make of it.  Just by opening your eyes, you have achieved more than a vast number.”

             “What does it mean for me to open my eyes?”

             “Just be aware of the Darkness around you.  It is there to help you.  To support you.  Feed you.”

             “So, what am I supposed to do now, if I accept You?  Sit around in some black hole where You put me?”

             “You are free to do whatever you want.  You are of the Darkness, you may go where ever you please and still be whole.  Others are not so lucky.”

             “Is the crew in danger?”

             “Everyone is always in danger.”

             “Will remaining in the Darkness hurt them if they are not of it?”

             “No.  The Darkness welcomes all, however, they may not find the same comfort you find here.”

             “Am I a danger to them?”

             “They do not know, nor do they understand.  But you are a shadow to their Light.  You can lead them to a life of comfort and ease.  Being around you can soothe the Light in themselves.”

             “Is the Light in them a bad thing?”

             “The Light is erratic.  It sputters and flares, leaving people empty and craving.  The Darkness is steady.  In some ways they can play off each other.  In other ways, they will flare each other up.”

             “But what of us?”

             “What do you think?”

             Oikawa woke up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Ya'll! Welcome back <3 I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Maybe it answered some questions, maybe it didnt't! Let me know what you think! Follow me on twitter @SkyClimber14


	17. Rise and Fall

When Oikawa woke up it was not with a gasping breath or to a lightning bolt.  His eyes, simply opened.  He knew immediately that everything was different.  The world, the cosmos was very much the same, something like that does not change on turn.  He knew it was him who was different, but that didn’t change the fact that it felt like his world was anew.

             As he opened his eyes to see the worried faces of his companions from his place stretched out on Iwaizumi’s lap, he noted the stick of sweat to his skin, the cold breeze along his bare feet.  But more than that, he noticed the brightness in the dark corners of the room.  He knew instantly where everything was, what it was, and how it had come to be in this room.  The knowledge was not obtrusive, it simply came to mind as if it had been there all along.  If he thought hard enough, he thought he could still feel the strain in his muscles from moving the furniture here himself.

             His quiet contemplation was quickly broken as he was bombarded by questions.

             His laughter was soft, his eyes shining as he looked up at Iwaizumi, “Did you miss me, sweetheart?”  his voice came out deep, nothing more than a purr.  Oikawa watched with glee as his cheeks peaked red for a brief moment before he was thrown out of his comfortable position and onto the hard-wooden floor. 

             He didn’t remain there for long, being grabbed by the front of his shirt and hauled up to look Yahaba straight in the eyes.  His expression was a mixture of worry, fear, but glimmering in the background was the slightest trace of hope.  Oikawa simply nodded, bringing his hand up to cup Yahaba’s nape before bringing their foreheads together to touch.  A breath was forced out of Yahaba as if he had been punched in the stomach, before he pulled back and sat with a rigid back.  Oikawa could see the war waging in his posture.  The desire to jump and cry for joy but not willing to let too much hope rise up too soon.

             Oikawa turned to face Hanamaki, about to give him a piece of his mind, but he was beaten to the punch, “You can’t even die properly can you!”  The snide remark was paired with a broad, relaxed smile.  Oikawa punched him lightly in the shoulder before turning back to Kiyoko, who sat perfectly across from them.

             “Thank you for your help.  If you do not mind, I have a few more questions.”

             Kiyoko nodded with the grace of a queen.

             “Why are you helping us?”  With this, all attention shifted.

             “That is my heart’s desire.  I sit here as a waypoint for those who do not know who they are, but also those who do not know where they are going.”

             Oikawa nodded.  “Where did the money in the chest come from.  It does not look like you are sitting on a mountain of gold.”

             “Often times travelers come to me in search of knowledge.  If they can make it here to me, I say they have earned that right, just as you have.  They feel a need to pay me for my services.  But as you can see, I have no need for that here, so I use it as an invitation to others who think they are up for the challenge.”

             “So, it was all a test.”  Hanamaki breathed.

             “Yes.  I do not wish to help just anyone.  Finding lost earrings is inconsequential to my purpose.”  Those words were pointed sharply at Oikawa.

             “Do you know anything about the Birds’?”  Iwaizumi whipped around to look at Oikawa as he asked.

             “I do.  While I never had the pleasure of meeting them myself, I know they employed the use of one of our kind to fill their coffers.”

             “And you think lowly of them for that?”

             “They rarely are of significance to come to mind, other than to think of how their wealth could be used to topple today’s hierarchy.”

             “What does that mean?”  Oikawa could feel Iwaizumi’s reluctance to ask a question here.

             Kiyoko’s burning gaze slowly moved over to Iwaizumi.  “It seems as though only beings of the Light seek out the treasure.  But what is required to find the trove puts the rest of my people at risk.  The secrets guarding the Birds’ are not ones to be taken lightly.  They were trusted by the Darkness, and that is why their treasure remains hidden, but something of that magnitude is not something that should be willingly given into the hands of the Light.”

             “The treasure is dangerous?”  Oikawa asked.

             Kiyoko stared into Oikawa’s eyes, searching him.  Her eyes snapped to the others before she spoke lowly.  “Is this what you truly desire to know?”  They all nodded.  She sighed.  “The Birds’ were the first group to utilize both the power of the Light and the Darkness, together.  They played the hand of the Light, showing themselves; building their legend as a defense for the knowledge they utilized from the Darkness.”

             “The greatest thing we can find in the Birds’ treasure is knowledge.”  Oikawa breathed.

             “Yes.  A library on every subject ever dreamt of.”

             “They built an impossible legend about wealth beyond the imagination, to hide the truth of what they were really doing.”  Oikawa gasped.

             “But there are accounts of true riches they stole!  Is that all a fake?!”  Hanamaki cried out.

             “No.”  The room was electric.

             “Can we find it?”  Hanamaki’s voice had never been so alive.

             “I do not know yet.  But I can point you towards the first step in learning.  All though, I feel you were on your way to discovering it on your own.  I must warn you; you are not the only ones on the hunt for the lost trove.  But I think you may already know this as well.”

             Oikawa looked to Iwaizumi; the warning from Kuroo coming immediately to mind.  He received a nod in return.  When they looked back at Kiyoko, she gave them their first solid lead and they left out another door that, from the outside looked like a solid part of the wall.  Kiyoko gave them one last note.

             “You walked well through the maze.  This door, and my help will always be open to you.  Fare well.”

             The quad began their walk back to the ship, the plants outside the complex seemed to shine infinitely brighter, and it could have convinced them they were out in the daylight.  The mist, soft and soothing to their skin.

             What a sight they must have been from the ship, wide, glassy eyed, Oikawa with only one boot in his hands, his hair a mess.  Each man wandering his own maze of thoughts.  The calls from the ship rang out around them.  Oikawa’s heart was light, springing to life in his chest at getting to board the Blue Castle once again.

             In solidarity, they each climbed into the ship, and paused before hugging each of the members.  Hanamaki spent a while in the embrace of Matsukawa while the others tried to draw information out of the remaining three.  Iwaizumi blubbered, his brain still a mess of information.

             “We are going to find the Birds’ treasure,” Oikawa’s voice rang out clear.  The reactions ranged from absurd laughter, shocked faces, to outright rejection.

             “If this is going to work, we all need to be on the same page,” Iwaizumi’s voice rang out clear, the crew snapping to attention.  “We’re going to get out of here, Matsukawa, I assume you have a report for me?  Once we’re out, we’ll have a full crew meeting.”  Iwaizumi let out a whole-body sigh.  The crew moved into position while in a daze.  Of course, there was conversations speculating what was happening, but the crew worked well while Oikawa and Iwaizumi went into the office to copy over this location so they knew how to get back to Kiyoko.

             Oikawa sat down on the desk, his pants around his ankles, while Iwaizumi sat opposite him, meticulously copying the dots on his leg with practiced expertise.

             “Do you think this will really work?”  Iwaizumi’s voice was soft.

             “Put all your trust in me,” Oikawa breathed.

             “Trust isn’t a one-way road.  If we are going to follow you wholly, you need to trust us as well…  You cannot carry this whole thing on your shoulders.  We have to be a team.”

             “Well of course, I cannot man this ship all by myself,” Oikawa’s joke fell hollow.

             “Idiot, you know that’s not what I meant.  Lean on us.  On me at least.  I realize this cannot be easy for you, every time you get your footing, you lose it again.  Let us be your footing.”  Iwaizumi’s eyes were dark and deep, the sincerity almost smothering, as he looked up at Oikawa.  The feeling sent a shiver up his back and his eyes pricked.  He simply sniffed and nodded.  This was enough for Iwaizumi as he turned back to his ink well, resumed copying the map.

             “Do you see a way out yet?”  Oikawa asked.

             “Isn’t that your job?”

             Oikawa chuckled at that, “Are you taking back your words, Iwa?”

             Iwaizumi scowled at him before he began aggressively pinching the skin, looking for a way to get the surrounding lines matched up.

             Oikawa laughed, pushing his hands away.  “It is not about how to get out.  It is about where we want to go.”

             “Well where do we want to go?”  Iwaizumi sat like an obedient, but petulant, student.

             “Deeper, of course.  You have a compass on that paper?”

             “Yes, I compared it to the other maps.”  He replied before passing the paper over to Oikawa who set it down facing him and curling his leg up to his chest.  The skin on his leg was pulled tight, leaving no visible crease for them to leave through.  Oikawa’s brows drew together, he looked closer, but as he could see, there was no way out.

             “No way,” Iwaizumi breathed.  His finger coming up to draw a connection from a line on the very edge of their current map, to where the skin of his thigh touched to his shirt.  Oikawa whipped his shirt off, put his leg back where it was, and waited for Iwaizumi’s confirmation.  Iwaizumi looked before turning around and pacing with his hands in his hair.

             “Yes?  Yes??”  Oikawa asked breathless.

             “Yea.  A perfect line.”  Oikawa shook out a laugh

             “Of course.  Of course, she would be tucked so deeply in the Darkness.”

             “Right, your planet only had a shallow line, right?  And yet when we left there, we were somewhere completely different.  Where will this place us?”

             “That’s how the Birds’ did it.  You said they were thought to use black holes, but no one knew how they traveled with them.  They fold the Light and shoot you back out into it.  Little pockets.”  Iwaizumi looked like he’d found another treasure chest.

             “So how do we know which way to exit?”

             “Based on what Kiyoko said, we should keep heading west, but that is going to shoot us further than we anticipate.”

             “If we go east, its going to shoot us back to most civilization.  Maybe we can learn something before we really dive in.”

             “It will be a long trip back to just where we are now.  It’s been what, two black holes and one warp?”

             Iwaizumi groaned, “You’re right.  We need to talk to the crew about this.  We can’t just keep dragging them along behind us.”  Oikawa was giddy, nodding along.

 

* * *

 

 

             The meeting with the crew was long and drawn out.  Anything less would be an insult to these men.  They started with the conversation Iwaizumi had with the councilors on Oikawa’s planet, and the means of acquiring Oikawa’s help.  Oikawa rolled up his sleeve to show the crew the map again.  They told them how Oikawa was able to get them out of the black hole at his planet.  They had already heard about how he could see things when he touched them, but they didn’t know the extent to it, like how Oikawa led them to Kiyoko.  That was a hard story to tell them.  Oikawa knew if it wasn’t for Iwaizumi and Hanamaki’s agreement, these men would not believe a word he was saying.  They explained how them getting here was all a test for Oikawa, and because they passed, they got a lead on the Birds’.

             The crew finally agreed to back track a bit to try to get their bearings out west before they shoot out into the complete unknown.  With that, Iwaizumi and Oikawa explained how they planned to get out of the black hole.  South east.  The crew kicked into gear, their unsettlement about this place clearly evident.

             Exiting the black hole was just as painful as the first time, but the crew prepared for it as they heard Oikawa’s call.  The cathartic release they all felt upon reentry into the open sky still brought up a cheer from all decks.

             The weight of the day was heavy on the crew, each finishing their duties and settling in for the night before their shifts.  Oikawa laid out under the open sky in his hammock, the lights from the starts seemed so much brighter now.  He laughed at how when he first saw them, he believed them to be the true source of life out in the universe.  And yet, now, his eyes were drawn to the dark areas, wondering what was out there.  His mind was still racing, every time he closed his eyes, there was just a whirlwind of thoughts.  He groaned, the cold wind slipping through his clothes.  Oikawa flopped onto the deck, his body’s desire to sleep leading him deeper into the ship. 

             Oikawa knocked on Iwaizumi’s door.

             “Come in.”  Iwaizumi’s voice rumbled through the door.  Oikawa popped his head in, looking around the lit room for the captain.  “Oh.  Oikawa, did you need something?”

             Oikawa felt his breath shutter as he exhaled.  “Are you going to bed soon?”  He could hear the exhaustion in his own voice.

             Iwaizumi looked around his room, setting his papers aside.  “I had a few more things to do.  But they can wait until the morning.”  His voice was rough and raspy.

             “Can…  Can I join you?”

             Iwaizumi nodded his assent.  “Are you ok?”  He asked, walking slowly towards Oikawa.  He looked like he was approaching a spooked animal.

             Oikawa looked down at himself, seeing he was visibly shaking.  “I…  I just need some grounding.”  Iwaizumi hummed, nodding, opening his arms for Oikawa.  He nearly collapsed as he felt Iwaizumi’s warm arms wrap around him; the embrace all that was holding him steady.  It was like Iwaizumi had flipped the “off” switch to his brain, but his body was still unable to relax.

             “Come on, let’s get ya into bed.”  Iwaizumi’s voice rumbled against Oikawa as he herded the tall man towards the bed.  Oikawa was sat down, his mind muddy.  It seemed like too much work to do anything else than just follow Iwaizumi with his eyes while he scurried around the room gathering things for Oikawa.  His body was heavy – resisting his desires to move.

             When Iwaizumi came back and stood in front of Oikawa, he just slumped, his head resting on Iwaizumi’s chest.  He sighed, working slowly to ease Oikawa out of his clothes, slipping him into pajama pants instead.  He flopped down on the bed, watching Iwaizumi get himself ready for bed.  Even as he laid still, relaxed against the bed, his body shook, relentlessly twitching.  When the captain had changed and the room was dark, he hesitated on his side of the bed.

             “Are you sure this is ok?”

             “Yes.”  Oikawa hummed, reaching out to Iwaizumi.

             Iwaizumi pulled the covers back; the bed shook slightly as his weight shifted the mattress.  He laid on his side, facing Oikawa.  He tried closing his eyes, but the rush was still in his ears; the lights and shapes moving behind his eyelids.  He rolled to look at Iwaizumi.

             “Would you mind?”  His voice was quiet, but not shaking nearly as bad as he was before.

             “That’s really what you want?”  Iwaizumi’s voice was uncertain.

             “Yes.”  There was a rustling next to him as Iwaizumi shuffled closer.  Warmth washed over Oikawa as the other man moved in.  A thick arm was thrown over his waist, and Oikawa was pulled into his broad chest.  His dark hair tickled his jaw as his head rested on Oikawa’s chest.  Oikawa shuffled further into Iwaizumi’s embrace.  The rage of energy in his chest calming under the weight resting on his body.

             “Mmm… Forgot to ask Kiyoko why y’u’re so cold.”  Iwaizumi mumbled; the sleep heavy in his voice already.

             “Maybe we should ask why you are so warm.”  Iwaizumi huffed a laugh, the breath spanning his chest, raising goosebumps in its wake.

             The two men snuggled into the soothing embrace of the other, calming the fires burning in their souls, until they fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ha.... so I genuinely thought I had already published most of this chapter! Turns out I didn't so I'm sorry for the later update! I hope you enjoyed this! Again, thank you for reading! Love ya'll! Follow me on twitter @SkyClimber14 if you wanna chat <3


	18. Echo

             Waking up is such an odd experience when you really think about it.  Whether you are dreaming or not, waking up is the present forcing its way into your consciousness.  When dreaming, you could be anywhere, anyone.  But reality sets in, and your dreams are just that, dreams.  And yet, for Oikawa, the reality is almost wilder than anything he had ever dreamed of in his youth.  The not-knowing limited him, kept him from even scratching the surface of what it means to truly exist in a universe full of life.

             But waking up with Iwaizumi stretched out across him, is a reality beyond even the pure imagination of his dreams.  And yet, it feels as natural as flying does in dreams.  It is something he knew should just shake his mind with implications or worries, and yet it just _is_.  There was no denying what was happening, no fog in his mind about the how or the why.  Iwaizumi was here because Oikawa had asked him to be here.  He had said yes, and now they were reveling in the mutual comfort of the other.

             Oikawa wasn’t sure if Iwaizumi was awake or not yet.  His breathing was hitting him differently, it still wasn’t with the same depth as was normal.  And yet, Oikawa could feel him moving around more.  Oikawa basked in the moment.  Free from the drag of sleep to lay and just be in this moment with Iwaizumi.  This comfort – this fire – was nothing Oikawa had ever experienced, either in the embrace of the Light or the Darkness.  It was peace.  But peace in the sense of knowing he could do anything with Iwaizumi as his pillar.  The peace was not a simple lack of fear, but an enabling for everything: jokes, fights, sleeping, running, playing, crying. Hope.  Every door was open to him.  And that was something that Oikawa had never experienced before.  It was scary.  And yet that ability to be afraid was rooted in the peace of knowing he was safe to feel with Iwaizumi. 

             Oikawa thought about Yahaba then.  How was this different?  Because _obviously_ there was a difference.  Oikawa knew he felt the same peace with Yahaba, but he also wasn’t going to Yahaba for grounding so he could sleep.  But in a sense, Yahaba was his grounding, but a grounding to his cause, his drive.  Yahaba did not calm Oikawa, he sparked his pulse, pushed him further.  A physical presence to keep him on task, to share in his pains.  Maybe that was a part of it too.  Yahaba and Oikawa shared their trauma; they knew each other inside and out.  With Iwaizumi, there was a whole locked door of mystery, and yet, Oikawa felt like he knew him wholly.  That dichotomy kept Oikawa on his toes.

             Iwaizumi was definitely awake now.  But this time was different.  He did not jump to his feet and put on his clothes and walk out the door.  He took a deep breath and looked up at Oikawa.

             “Good morning.”  His voice was clear.  Maybe he _had_ been awake for a while?

             “Good morning.”

             “Feeling better?”

             “Thank you.”

             Iwaizumi stretched out his neck, pressing further into Oikawa.  “Don’t.  I’m here.  You’re here.  Let’s go eat before someone comes banging on my door.”

             Oikawa smiled, “Ok.”

             “You’re weird.”  Iwaizumi grunted before getting up and stretching next to Oikawa.

             “Hey!  What does that mean?!”  Oikawa pouted.

             “I’ve been laying there all night and you’re still cold.  ‘s not natural.”

             “You’ve been laying here all night and you’re still hot.”  Iwaizumi raised an eyebrow at that before standing to get dressed for the day.  Oikawa stretched out his asleep arm, watching him move around contently.

             “I said get up you, lazy ass!”  Iwaizumi grumbled, throwing a spare pillow at him.

             “I cannot move my arm!”  Oikawa screamed as the pillow slammed into his face, knocking him back onto the bed.  Oikawa jumped off the bed, his arm dangling numb by his side.  A laugh was ripped out of Iwaizumi before he rolled his eyes and left Oikawa standing alone, half naked, with a dead arm in the room.  Oikawa grumbled the whole time he was putting on his clothes, before walking out into the ship barefoot.  The wear of the wood, a comfort under his feet.

             There was more noise than he expected in the mess hall.  Oikawa walked into complete chaos.  Yahaba and Kyotani were rolling around on the floor where the tables had been forced apart to make room for them while the crew stood around them.  The sound of the door closing drew Kyotani’s attention.

             “You!”  He growled, his eyes passing quickly over Oikawa’s body, before trying to lunge at Oikawa.  He was quick.  But Yahaba was quicker, using the opening to grab Kyotani and pin his arm behind his back.  Oikawa looked around wildly at everyone else.  They all stood calmly, watching with mild concern as Yahaba torqued Kyotani’s arm further and further behind his back, Oikawa was worried he would have to break the other man’s arm before he submitted.  But, right as everyone prepared themselves for it to happen, Kyotani tapped out.  Yahaba dropped his arm immediately, like he had been burned for even having to push that far.  He climbed off him before offering a hand to the other.  Kyotani looked up him with a fire in his eyes, but took the hand none the less. 

             And just like that, the others put the room back together while Kyotani huffed, sitting down.  Oikawa caught Yahaba by the elbow.

             “What happened here?”  his voice low and serious.

             Yahaba smirked at him before nodding over to Iwaizumi.  Oikawa scowled before following his gaze, nothing stood out.  “He’s wearing your shirt.”  Oikawa’s eyes widened as he whipped back to Yahaba.  There could not have been a bigger shit-eating, smug look on his face.  “That shirt you have on is a bit breezy is it not?”  Oikawa looked between himself and Iwaizumi, the change wasn’t that obvious, but these men see each other all day, every day.  And even Oikawa couldn’t deny the shirt Iwaizumi was wearing was tighter than usual, clinging to and showing off the rise and fall of his arms and the broad expanse of his chest.  In contrast, the shirt he was currently wearing hung off him, flowing down to where he had tucked it into his pants. 

             “And that started a fight?”

             “Well not really, but he may have made some comment to you and I called him on it.  He did not like that.”

             “And no one tried to stop it?”

             “Why stop it?”  Iwaizumi’s deep voice rumbled from beside Oikawa.

             Oikawa stuttered.

             “No one got hurt, but even if Kyotani did, it’s his own fault.  He should know better than shit-talk his elders.  Yahaba made a perfect example of what happens if you don’t.  And if it hadn’t been Yahaba, it would have been someone else.”  A general round of assent rose from the other members as Iwaizumi spoke.  “But still, fighting isn’t appropriate.  Yahaba and Kyotani, you have to work together for the next week.  If I hear so much as one complaint about the other, you will be dealing with me.”  Yahaba simply nodded his agreement, taking his punishment with as much grace as ever.  Kyotani scowled as Yahaba sat next to him to finally eat his breakfast, but that was expected.

             Iwaizumi tapped Oikawa on the arm before moving to the table where Matsukawa and Hanamaki sat.  Of course, those two also had smarmy smiles as well.

             “You look like you’re glowing, Oiks,” the words slid through Hanamaki’s teeth. 

             Oikawa, confused by what he said, simply replied, “I slept very nicely.”

             Hanamaki elbowed Matsukawa, “Oh, I’m _sure_ you did!”  The two cracked up, before Iwaizumi cleared his throat.  The two looked at him before laughing even harder.

             “Alright, that is enough.  Nothing happened and you know it.”

             “We slept?  Is there something wrong with that?”  Oikawa was genuinely confused by this whole interaction.  “Wait…”  They didn’t actually think that?  “Is _that_ why Kyotani got so mad?”  Their laughter was absolutely raucous now, tears streaming down their eyes.  Oikawa turned to look at Iwaizumi, who looked equally bemused, but held it back.  Oikawa was caught opening and closing his mouth, nothing coming out.

             “Oh, relax we are pulling your leg.”  Hanamaki managed to squeeze out as they came down from their laughing fit.  Oikawa ducked his head and started trying to eat his breakfast.

             “Oh, lighten up, everyone has someone they go to when they need something on this ship.  Well, except maybe Kyotani, and Iwaizumi before you got here, but that’s something else entirely.”  Matsukawa said around his own mouthful of food.

             Oikawa looked between the two.  “Does…  Does Kyotani,” he looked, hoping they would get his meaning.

             “Ha!  Not even in his wildest dreams!”  Hanamaki barked.

             “Oh…  So, then why does he not have someone?”

             “Because he is grouchy all the time!”  Someone from a different table called.

             “Oh, shut it.”  Kyotani’s voice cut through, everyone laughed at that.

             With that, the tension released from the crew, and everyone resumed their typical banter.  The rest of breakfast went without a hitch, everyone moving out to start their rounds.  Oikawa sat quietly, listening to Iwaizumi plan the day with Hanamaki and Matsukawa.  They would be making a stop in a nearby system so they could gather information and supplies before heading back out.  They were hoping to arrive by late afternoon.  When everything was settled, they split up to do their tasks.  Oikawa relaxed the more he fell into the routine of keeping the ship in order.

             They were nearing their destination when Iwaizumi called Oikawa over to him.  “Here, hold this.”  He handed Oikawa a bundle of multicolored strips of cloth.  Oikawa just shrugged before grabbing them.  “Anything?”  Iwaizumi prodded.

             Oikawa shrugged, “No, nothing.”  He looked closer at the bundle.  It was a collection of eight different colored, worn fabric tied together at the top.

             Iwaizumi hummed.  “Pick up the dark blue one.”  Obeying, Oikawa’s vision was overtaken by the machinery in the bottom floor of the ship.  His hand closed on the rest of the bundle, sending the sight from his mind.

             “What is this?”  Oikawa blinked his sight back into focus.

             “I had each member cut a bit of their rags off and tied them together, that way you can see what they see, or find them if something happens.”

             “That is…  A lot.”

             “We are going somewhere none of us have any knowledge of.  I am trusting you to help keep the rest of us safe.”  Iwaizumi’s words hit home, tying a knot in Oikawa’s chest.  He simply nodded in return.  “Take this too.  Keep it in your ear.”  He pulled a small metal piece from his pocket.  Oikawa squinted at it, but held still as Iwaizumi put the cold metal in his ear, feeling it warm quickly.  “Now, walk over there.”  Oikawa shrugged before moving across the deck.  “Cover your ears.”  Oikawa huffed.  “Still hear me?”  Iwaizumi’s voice was crystal clear in his ears.  He dropped his hands with a huge smile on his face.

             “WOW!  How did you do that?”  Oikawa yelled, seeing every member on deck flinch at his volume.  Had they already gotten their ear pieces?  He sucked in a deep breath to yell, but Kyotani’s voice cut stopped him.

             “Don’t you dare.”  Oikawa let out the breath in a laugh before hopping back over to Iwaizumi.

             “Is it going to be on all the time?”  Oikawa asked, overhearing every conversation going on right now.

             “No.  We are just testing it for now.  We will only use it when we need to.”  Iwaizumi said.

             “Hmm…  What other fancy stuff are you hiding on this ship, Iwa?”  He heard someone choke, a smirk setting in on his face.

             “Hey Matsu, you hear that?”  Hanamaki’s voice clipped through the earpiece.

             “I heard more than I ever need to.  They better turn that shit off before they close the bedroom door!”

             “Try to hide your jealousy a bit better, boys!”  Oikawa’s voice slipped low from his mouth.

             The piece became an incoherent mess, with different members of the crew speaking their disgust all at once.  Oikawa just laughed cheerfully.

             “Captain, come down for a few, I need to show you something.”  Kindaichi’s voice rose up once the others had quieted down.  Iwaizumi turned back to Oikawa.

             “Try to keep yourself out of trouble.”  He said before tapping his own earpiece and walking away.  Oikawa laughed, but checked if anyone needed his help before moving over to his hammock.  He rolled onto his side to watch the approach of the planet they would be docking at.  A mix of humming, singing or quiet conversation flowed through the earpiece, lulling Oikawa as he observed the planet.  This one was vastly blue, but Oikawa could see large expanses of green as it spun on its orbit, large masses of clouds obscuring most of the details.

             “We’re entering the gravitational pull, everyone get ready for re-entry.”  Yahaba’s voice cut through his ear, pulling him from his reverie.  Oikawa clambered down from his hammock, before getting in his position to hold the ship steady during entry.

             “Put your glasses on.  I don’t want your screams transmitted directly into my ears.”  Watari chipped.

             “And cover your fucken skin, I don’t want to have to cut another shirt off you!”  Iwaizumi boomed.

             “And get some shoes you, degenerate!”  Hanamaki called.

             “All ya’ll need a shower, so shut up!”  Kyotani snapped.

             The crew cheered at that.

             Oikawa felt the ship start rumbling as they got closer and closer to the planet.  He fumbled to get his glasses on and to pull down his sleeves before they broke through the atmosphere and the world flared to light.  Oikawa gasped as the sky was alight with blue that looked like it stretched way past the boundary of the atmosphere.  They ship sped up as it zipped through the clouds, the water slipping through the ship.

             As soon as they broke through the cloud layer, Oikawa knew this place was important.  The past planets they had visited had been quiet, peaceful places.  This one was buzzing with activity.  The Blue Castle slipped into a stream of traffic of other ships moving around the planet.  Oikawa couldn’t tear his eyes away from all the different ships, and crews suddenly around him.  Iwaizumi controlled the ship to sail smoothly through the mass of ships until they were closing in on the sea of blue water.

             They splashed down, sending a spray of water into the air.  It was quiet, the only sound was the wind pushing the sails and the ship rushing through the waves.  Oikawa looked up to see a stream of ships still above them.  When the sails were secured, he went up to Iwaizumi.

             “Why did we leave all the other ships?”  Oikawa asked.

             “Because, I don’t want to deal with all of them.  Besides, where we are going, it is quicker this way.”  He replied.

             “Why are they all in a stream like that?  There is all that room between the water and where they are.”

             “That is the altitude they have to stay at.  Or down where we are.”

             “Says who?”

             “This planets government.”

             “Oh.”

             “I can’t tell you about it right now, but when we get to our destination, I can fill you in.  But for real, try to act normal here, they don’t like people who are too different.”

             “What does that mean?  Everyone is different.”

             “Well, yes.  Everyone is different, and as important as this place is to space travel, they like to keep themselves as ‘pure’ as they can.”

             “That sounds awful.”

             “It is, but we have to keep that to ourselves.”  Iwaizumi looked at Oikawa to show his seriousness.  Oikawa nodded before moving back to his post.  He re-checked each of his ties, making sure everything was secure before there was a call from above him.

             Watari and Hanamaki were up in the crow’s nest, leaning over the railing, waving at Oikawa.  Oikawa smiled before climbing up the ropes to reach the top.  The shaking was rather rough here, in the water, but Oikawa remembered Watari’s training and tried to steady himself.

             “Alright little buddy, this place is a mess.  They honestly have the greatest potential for fun, so they decided to ruin it and create all these rules to keep people like us from having any sort of a good time!”  Hanamaki said with a wicked smile on his face.

             “So…  You’re telling me to stay out of trouble here?  Do not go wandering off on my own?”

             “Yes,” Watari replied while shaking his head ‘no’ and Hanamaki mouthed ‘no’.

             “Ok…  How do I do that?

             “Just follow our lead.”  Hanamaki winked.  Oikawa gave them a look but shrugged anyways.  The two quickly moved onto other business, leaving Oikawa to take in a deep breath of the salty, sea air.

             He heard birds cawing in the distance.  They must be getting closer.  By now, the star was high in the sky, casting harsh light that reflected off the water, and into his eyes, preventing him from seeing much of anything even with the glasses.

             “Hey, Oikawa, get back down here, I have a job for you.”  Iwaizumi called through the ear piece.

             “ _Oh_ , I’m sure you do have a _job_ for him!”  Hanamaki was cracking up again.

             “Try to keep your clothes on this time!”  Matsukawa called back.

             “Can you two _please_ keep your jokes to yourself?”  Yahaba’s calm voice slipped through the ear piece.

             “Fucking hell you two, _shut up_!”  Kyotani’s rough growl cut him off.

             “Oh ho ho!  If both of you have something to say, I suppose we can leave Oikawa and the captain alone.”  Oikawa could hear the intent dripping from Matsukawa’s voice.

             “You need to stop chatting with Kuroo and Bokuto, Matsu!”  Maki cracked up.

             “Maybe I wouldn’t have to chat with them if you could get your head out of the eyeglass sometimes.”

             “You know Iwa-“  Hanamaki started.

             “Oikawa, I swear to god, you better get your ass down here right this second so I can shut these damn comms off.”  Iwaizumi growled into the mic.  Hanamaki’s face dropped as Watari waved Oikawa away.  The comm was completely silent on his climb down.  He scurried down to Iwaizumi’s office to find him with his piece out of his ear and his hands barely holding his head off the desk.

             “Are you ok?”  Iwaizumi lifted his head as Oikawa spoke, pulling his glasses off his face.

             “Let’s just say, there is a reason Maki is in the nest and Matsu is in the hull.  Those two will still try to ride a dead horse.”  Oikawa shot him a startled look but Iwaizumi just waved him off.  He, instead, pulled a controller out of a drawer and pressed a button; there was a soft click in his ear, which he assumed meant the comm was off now.

             “What did you need?”  Oikawa asked, stepping further into the room.

             “I need you to do a bit of recon for us.  This planet is a central point into the trade west.  Lots of cargo and lots of information passes through here.  As much as I would like to drop all other needs aside, we can not just go running west with out at least a small amount of backup finances.”

             “So, you need me to find lost stuff again?”

             “Kind of, but differently, if you can, which I suspect you can.”

             “Tell me what you need.”

             “This planet is where I studied as a cartographer.  There is a huge collection of maps here, some of the highest quality ever made.  And ranging from all known expanses of the galaxies.  I believe they are probably making the prototype maps for the west here as well.”

             “So, we are going to go map shopping?”

             “Yes and no.”  Iwaizumi looked around the room like he was thinking of how to say this.  “I can get you into where they keep the maps.  And usually there is no rules against _touching_ the maps, so they can be _examined properly._ ”  Oh.  “You catch what I’m saying?”  Iwaizumi’s gaze was heavy.

             “Yes.”  Iwaizumi let out a deep breath that he seemed to be holding back.

             “Good.  Good.”  His voice was soft.

             “You do not usually steal information like this do you?”  Oikawa asked softly, the crease between Iwaizumi’s eyebrows deepened.  “Do not fret.  I will help you.”

             “I- it’s not stealing, per say.  We are not taking the maps.  We are just checking for _overlap_ with what we already have.”  Iwaizumi stuttered, trying to convince himself as well as Oikawa.  Oikawa simply hummed in agreement, but his proper reply was cut off by a knock on the door.

             “Captain, we need you on deck, we are about to dock.”  Kunimi said softly, looking apologetically between the two men.  Oikawa thought that may have been one of the first times he had heard the younger man talk.  He would try to make an attempt to get closer to him.  Iwaizumi nodded, thanked the younger man and they were on their way back onto the deck.

             Oikawa gasped at the complete change of scenery; he joined Yahaba at the railing of the ship, feeling the water splash on their faces and then have the wind immediately blow it off.  The coastline was a thick band of beautiful cream, broken intermittently by docks that lead up to massive houses that seemed to continue going for as long as the beach did.  And just beyond the houses was a thin collection of trees before buildings sprung out of the ground and tried their best to touch the clouds.  The material of the buildings reflected the light of the star back into Oikawa’s eyes, making it even harder to tell where they began or ended.  Oikawa could really hear the birds now, just a bit further down the coast there was a swarm of them circling around… something. 

             The ship crested a small outcropping of rocks to reveal, the biggest port Oikawa had ever seen, even though there wasn’t a lot of competition right now.  But judging by the whistle that cut across the deck, he wasn’t the only one in awe at the size of it.

             “Eyes up, boys, time to get serious.”  Iwaizumi called across the deck.

             “Aye.”  The reply came.

             “I am going to set the comms to opt in.  Let me know if you see anyone we know.  Try not to fill the channel with unnecessary chatter.”  He continued calling orders for everyone once they docked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yall…. there are not words for how busy and exhausted I have been. This chapter was supposed to be way longer, but I felt guilty about making you wait who knows how long for it to even be finished, so I hope you enjoy this one! Also, I've written a few little pieces that dont really fit into the timeline that I have going right now, they are just extra chapters written from Iwaizumi's point of view. How do yall feel about me using those when I fall behind on the usual chapters like I am now? I, of course, wouldn't post any spoilers, but I kinda wanted to wait until the end of the story to share all my extra scenes but, yall let me know what you think :) Thank you again for all your amazing support, I couldn't do it without you. I will try to have the next chapter in a kinda timely manner but honestly I'm so swamped with work right now idk what I can do... Let me know what you think <3 Follow me on twitter for updates to show that I am, in fact, still alive @SkyClimber14


	19. EXTRA: Into Yesterday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Extra chapter that doesn't really fit in with the current timeline, sorry lol. No spoilers to the main plot. Also, this is from Iwaizumi's POV, hope you enjoy!

              Iwaizumi slowly closed his door and crossed the hallway to Oikawa’s room.  He knocked quietly before opening the door.  He saw Oikawa turn to face the door, it looked like he had been looking out the window.  Iwaizumi, noticing Yahaba was asleep, waved Oikawa outside.

              He smiled fondly at Oikawa before saying, “Follow me, I have something to show you.”  Oikawa’s eyes widened but he followed without much of a word. 

              Iwaizumi led them down into the ship, they passed cargo, the hold, and down to the lowest level.

              “This is a very suspicious date location, Iwa.”  Oikawa quipped as he leaned against the wall watching Iwaizumi work.  Iwaizumi just rolled his eyes before waving Oikawa over to him.  He watched the tall man detach himself from the wall and saunter over to him.  His strides were long and smooth, just like the rest of him.  He leaned against the railing that separated him from the area Iwaizumi was in.

              “Watch.”  Iwaizumi pressed a few buttons on his command panel before the right side of the ship opened up, revealing open space.  Oikawa’s eyes widened comically, and he leaned so far against the rail that he almost flipped right over it.  He met Iwaizumi’s eyes with a smile plastered onto his face.  Iwaizumi could immediately feel the effect of his contagious smile.  He turned around to pull the small surfer down on its pulley.  He heard Oikawa gasp behind him.  Once the surfer was secured in the loading slot, he turned to offer Oikawa his hand to climb over the railing.  Oikawa, who was practically jumping with excitement, leapt at the opportunity.  Next thing Iwaizumi knew, Oikawa was in his personal space, in the tight confines of the loading bay.  Oikawa, having no problem with the proximity, simply balanced himself against Iwaizumi with his hands on his shoulders.  Iwaizumi cleared his throat and looked away, trying not to blush.  He pointed to the front end of the board.

              “Sit there,” he couldn’t believe the softness of his own voice as he spoke.  He watched Oikawa shuffle around him before he eased on the surfer.  Oikawa sat down in the little dip like it was made for him.  Iwaizumi’s heart near burst seeing this man sitting on his childhood board.  He pushed a few buttons to detach the board from its constraints.  It immediately rocked and swayed under Oikawa.  He grabbed onto the sides before looking up at Iwaizumi.  He just smiled and the man before pushing the nose of the board outside of the ship.  He heard Oikawa’s gasp just before the man about toppled the board trying to lean and look over the sides.  Iwaizumi quickly reached out to steady the board.  When he looked up to chastise the man, he couldn’t bring himself to do it.  The smile on his face and the stars twinkling in his eyes took his breath away.

              “Are you just going to stand there and stare at me, or are you going to take me on a ride?”  Oikawa spoke low and slowly.  Iwaizumi wanted to scowl at the provocation, but he just smiled at the man before pushing off from the bay and out into open space.  Oikawa rocked back and forth, looking at everything.  Iwaizumi smacked the back of his head from where he stood unraveling the small sail attached to the deck of the board.

              “Hold still, there’s no safety ropes here.”  Oikawa slouched for a minute before popping back up and looking around.

              The air was quiet, only diminished by the soft hum of the sail and the wind blowing by them.  Oikawa leaned back on his palms, his legs dangling off the sides of the board.  He kicked them back and forth, his head lulled comfortably to the side.

              “Hold on,” Iwaizumi said softly.  It felt wrong to talk too loudly out here, like it was disturbing the peace.  Oikawa seemed to notice this as well because he turned around and nodded at Iwaizumi rather than speak.  Iwaizumi used the platform at the back of the board to kick it into gear.  The sail puffed under the energy and the surfer cruised into motion.  They sailed through air smoothly.  Everything seemed to move in slow motion.  The air wove its way through Oikawa’s white hair, making it dance along his face.  Even though he wasn’t facing Iwaizumi, he could see the smile pushing out his cheeks.  His eyes were alive under the stars.  But then Iwaizumi thought he saw a tear fall down the side of his face.  He frowned before kicking the board into a higher gear, determined to wipe those tears before they could ever fall.  The board jerked slightly as it sped up.  Oikawa gasped as he gripped the board.

              Hanamaki had told Iwaizumi about a large asteroid among a small field and said it may be worth investigating.  Iwaizumi steered the board in that direction, smoothly swaying it back and forth hearing Oikawa’s free laughter.  Suddenly there was a hand shoved up into Iwaizumi’s line of sight, and then another. 

Iwaizumi’s eyes widened as he looked down to see Oikawa with both his hands in the air, “WOOOOHOOOOOOOOO.”  Oikawa yelled at the top of his lungs.  Iwaizumi was just about to knock him upside the head when he noticed he had his legs wrapped securely under the board.  He was trusting that as long as Iwaizumi didn’t flip them; that he would be ok.  Iwaizumi’s heart welled under the sign of trust, and at the pure excitement Oikawa brought with him wherever he went.  He watched as Oikawa spread out his arm so that his fingertips were dragging just beyond the edge of the atmosphere created by the sail.  He left them out there for a moment before pulling them back into the warmth. 

He turned around to look up at Iwaizumi.  He didn’t think he had ever seen someone look so happy before.  His eyes burned as if he wanted to ask for more but was already overwhelmed.  Iwaizumi extended a hand out to him to pull him up to were Iwaizumi was standing.  He felt Oikawa strong grip and hauled him to his feet while trying to maintain his balance on the board.  They swayed, but the speed they were moving at helped to sustain them.  Iwaizumi placed Oikawa between himself and the handle that ran the back half of the surfer for steering.  Oikawa held on tight to the bar as Iwaizumi wrapped himself around him.  The swaying eased as they established their weight.  Iwaizumi had to make small adjustments due to all their weight being on one side.  This was only a small downside of using his old surfer rather than one of their newer models.  He wasn’t going to complain about that too much when he had Oikawa leaning gracefully against him.

Now that Oikawa was safely attached to the board, Iwaizumi started to get more daring with tricks.  He started making sharp banks and rode invisible walls.  Their small gravity working overtime to keep their feet on the board, but that didn’t keep their weight from making them feel the effect of flying around in space where there was no up, down, left or right.

Oikawa’s knuckles were white against the bar, but he whooped and hollered with each movement.  Iwaizumi kicked the board into its final gear before gunning it.  He wrapped his right arm around Oikawa’s waist and pulled back on the steering.  Hard.  Oikawa whooped and screamed as they flipped backwards.  Iwaizumi held his breath as his stomach flipped around.  Everything was spinning.  Iwaizumi was temped to let his eyes roll back, from tracking the stars – mere streaks of light far in the distance –  through the flip.  It felt like it stretched on forever, but was over in an instant.  His ears were ringing and his throat was sore from cheering with Oikawa.  They raced back to right side up before Iwaizumi let up on the steering to keep them from flipping again. 

Oikawa was breathing hard against him.  He slumped against Iwaizumi, his head resting on his shoulder.  He turned his head towards Iwaizumi’s neck and whispered, “Can we do that again?”  Iwaizumi felt his stomach drop just at the thought of doing that again.  Tricks weren’t his thing, he got where he needed to go with speed rather than flair. 

He knocked his jaw against Oikawa’s head before replying, “Nope.”

Oikawa jerked up, nearly headbutting Iwaizumi in the process, to look at Iwaizumi.  “Why not?”  He was pouting.

Iwaizumi rolled his eyes before smiling and nodding to what was in front of them.  “Stop pouting.”

Oikawa only pouted more before turning to look.  The pout melted right off his face, making way to wide eyes and a slack jaw.

The small asteroid field was immediately in front of them.  The rocks swung around themselves, each reflecting a purple gleam.  Thankfully, they weren’t tightly packed and there was plenty of room for them to slip through to get to the center.  Iwaizumi slowed them down before removing his hand from Oikawa’s waist.  He returned his hand to the bar to steer them through the maze.  Oikawa, still in between Iwaizumi’s arms, moved to mimic Iwaizumi’s stance.  When he pressed himself against Iwaizumi, he gave Oikawa a look with raised eyebrows.

“If I’m gunna learn, I gotta learn from the best!  And that means I gotta know how you move.”  He said it all with a straight face, but that immediately broke for a smirk. 

Iwaizumi was a goner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I dont know if I put this with the last chapter or not, but @Yaboykeiji on twitter and also tumblr (I think) drew this absolutely STUNNING piece of Oikawa!! [ART](https://twitter.com/yaboykeiji/status/1178499488836538369) Please go give it and them some amazing love! (Sorry I'm so late in sharing it ;-;)  
> Ya'll life has been TRYING me! Unfortunately, I haven't been able to write any new content for the main plot, so I hope you enjoyed this short little extra. I have a few more little scenes saved up, if I have to use them. Thankfully, one of my larges hurdles is over, but I still have a few more to go until I can get back to writing with any sort of regularity. That being said, when I do have main chapter updates, I will try to make them be larger for Ya'll!  
> Either way, thank you again for your support and love! again, if you want to find out if I am still alive, I'm on twitter [@Skyclimber14](https://twitter.com/SkyClimber14), I would love to talk with yall!  
> Big thanks to Xev for teaching me how to actually link things lmao <3


	20. Faultline

The crew quickly split into the city, some going to gather more supplies, others going to sell wares. Iwaizumi had masterfully divvied out some of the gold from Kiyoko’s chest, while hiding the rest away somewhere deep in the ship’s hull. Their first task was to buy Oikawa some new boots. This was done swiftly, and Oikawa was in awe at the comfort of his new shoes and how they did not scuff and scratch like his old ones had.

             The captain was now cautiously leading Oikawa through a city that seemed to have been built to make sure people got lost. The streets were split, half of it for the people walking, but on the other side of a measly barrier, closed off vehicles zipped by at neck breaking speeds with little regard for the people alongside them. They kicked up dust and buffeted the air around them, sending all the debris into the walkway. Oikawa caught himself coughing more than once, trying to clear his lungs of the rancid air cast by the machines. The twists and turns defied logic, the buildings were so high they cut off Oikawa’s view of the sky, the star’s light reflecting off all the glass so that he couldn’t even locate that _one_ land mark. Everything looked the same; the streets were packed with people all trying their best to ignore the existence of everyone else there. But Iwaizumi pressed on, and Oikawa worked hard just keeping up with him, knowing it would be a disaster if he got separated at this point. The wisdom of splitting the group up into pairs was also settling in. There was no way a group of people could easily navigate these crowds. More than a few times, Iwaizumi reached behind him to grab and make sure Oikawa was still in tow.

             Only once Oikawa was so thoroughly lost, he was sure he could never find his way back to the port, Iwaizumi pulled him down a smaller street, breaking away from a majority of the traffic; both released a deep breath. This side street was impeccably clean. In fact, it was unsettlingly clean, and here, away from the drone of the masses, it was still eerily loud. The city around them buzzed like a hive. Oikawa wanted to attribute it to the electricity pumping through every inch of the place, but the itch that had set deep in his skin warned him it may be something else.

             “Nearly there.” Iwaizumi whispered. Why was he whispering?

             “Are you ok?” Oikawa whispered back.

             “I- yes of course, why wouldn’t I be?” The question caught him off guard.

             “You are tense.”

             “This city gives me the creeps. I grew up around here, but I much prefer open space.” Oikawa hummed his agreement, moving a step closer to Iwaizumi as they walked.

             “So how is this going to work?”

             “You’re going to make sure every inch of your skin is covered as much as possible, we’re going to march in there, I will probably have to make some small talk. They show us the maps, you, I dunno, do your thing, and then we leave.”

             “I see. And if I cannot find anything?” A knot was settling into the pit of Oikawa’s stomach.

             “The odds of that are _very_ low.” Iwaizumi scoffed, before resuming his silence for the remainder of the walk.

             Oikawa was not sure what he was expecting from the place where maps were made, but this was as abrasive as he could have pictured. The building was two-fold, a glass exterior that matched most of the buildings around it, even if it was fatter and a bit shorter than the rest. But what really stood out, and set Oikawa’s hair on edge was the solid, dark, opaque stone building that sat in the middle of the glass one. The material looked to be the same as what made up the streets, but… It was a dome? As they got closer, Oikawa grew more and more confused. People were coming in and out of the building, the same as all the others around it, but Oikawa could see no one moving around the inside of the glass; where had they come from? Where were the people entering, going? Oikawa quickly figured that he had misjudged the size of the building and the dome within; as they approached the door, Oikawa’s neck craned up further and further until he could not even make up the top of the dome.

             “What _is_ this place?” Oikawa breathed.

             “The center of the known cosmos.” Iwaizumi replied, his voice cold, reclused as he pulled the door open. They were met with crisp, cool air that held none of the humidity or gentle warmth of the outside. A chill ran up Oikawa’s spine. Just walk in, touch some maps and get out, his body screamed.

             The lighting inside was off. Everything was aggressively bright, but Oikawa could not spot any single source for the light, it just overwhelmed the space even through his glasses. He adjusted his sleeves as Iwaizumi talked to a twig of a man behind the desk. Looking around, he saw most people moving down multiple sets of stairs, or sitting around the dome. Before this, Oikawa never would have considered himself to be a large man. And yet, the more he looked around, the more concerned he grew that these people were missing something very important from their diets. Oikawa tried not to judge based on any body, but all of the people around him looked emaciated beyond natural causes. Oikawa, genuinely, was not sure how they were standing or moving around. Had the people on the streets been the same size without him noticing? He grew worried about everyone he had bumped into.

             Quickly, Iwaizumi was waving him over, and they moved towards the stairs, deeper into the building. Iwaizumi held a card, with some quick writing on it, and he held it as their guide as they moved down the stairs that moved themselves. As they moved underground, the space grew darker, but somehow it still maintained that otherworldly glow. Oikawa was beginning to wonder if it was just him that felt so wildly out of place, or if it was the normal feeling for this building.

             The next floor down seemed to be more of a common area, people sat around eating and drinking at tables while some read books or worked on a tablet of some sort. Iwaizumi wasted no time here, hopping, instead, on another set of moving stairs to take them deeper into the ground.

             “Why does this building go down when all others in the city go up?” Oikawa whispered.

             “Now days, there isn’t much reason other than tradition. It used to be that the material the maps were made on would wither and decay faster in the light, so they would put them in sealed chambers, and that grew into this. But now, they have since fixed the issue of materials and maps can be displayed anywhere.”

             “I see. And the big thing in the middle?”

             “A planetarium.”

             “Please explain.” Oikawa huffed.

             “It is a room where they project holographs of the maps out into the room. It is a dome to mimic the way the stars look to the naked eye both from a planet and from a ship.” Iwaizumi was whispering faster and quieter now, trying to get all the information out before they reached the bottom of the stairs.

             “Can we go in there?”

             “Probably not, but we’ll see, ‘k?” Oikawa nodded in agreement.

             They walked through the third floor in silence as Iwaizumi led them around bends and corners until the hallway opened into a large room. The lights were dimmer here, easier on the eyes, but still well illuminating the rows and rows of maps on display. Oikawa let out a gasp as Iwaizumi hummed in approval. In the lighting, it really looked like the room stretched on in every direction; map stretched for as far as the eye could see, and beyond.

             “See, we’ll find something here.”

             “Where do we even start?” Oikawa’s eyes were wide.

             “Here, I got a card from the front desk.” Iwaizumi consulted the card in his hand before leading the way, slowly through the maze of desks and bookshelves packed with maps of varying sizes, shapes and ages.

             Oikawa’s mind was buzzing at this point, trying frantically to wrap around this new information of just _how_ large the cosmos is. They just kept walking and walking for what felt like an hour before Iwaizumi stopped and pulled him aside. He grunted in frustration, looking at a spot that was currently being occupied by three men. Oikawa couldn’t make out any details about them in the low light, but one of the men stood out simply because of how tall he was; even hunched over the map, he still towered over his companions.

             Apparently, they were looking at the map Iwaizumi wanted. Oikawa was not surprised at first, having heard Iwaizumi talk about how many people were making the move west, and this seemed to be the best possible spot to gather information. But Iwaizumi was tense, flustered even. He quickly pulled Oikawa deeper down the row of maps just as one of the men at the map they wanted straightened up and turned around, looking at the spot they had just vacated.

             “Do you know them?” Oikawa whispered, his blood spiking.

             “Unfortunately.” Iwaizumi huffed, his head still turning around looking for anyone else.

             “Are we in danger?”

             “Not… Quite. I just don’t want them knowing I want to look at that same map.” He didn’t sound too certain, but Oikawa chose not to push him further. He seemed to finally be relaxing a tad and moved to look at the maps surrounding them.

             His attention was immediately absorbed in the large maps and the information cards about each of them. Oikawa took that as his sign to start _touching_. He turned his back to Iwaizumi, a large perfect circle catching his eye. He didn’t recognize the name or any of the stars, but that did not surprise him too much. He started in the very center, not sure how to proceed. He placed his long pointer finger at the very center of the circle, but nothing. He laid his hands gently along the body of the map, but nothing. He moved on. He tried to work systematically, but he really had no idea what that would even mean.

             He moved through dozens of rows of maps, taking hours, unsuccessfully. The frustration and anxiety was building as he had found close to nothing at all. Once every few maps he would feel something, but on closer inspection of the map by Iwaizumi, it was worthless. His head was pounding, his fingers constantly tingling from being drug over varying textures. His shoulders were tense, a muscle in his neck pulled from continually looking over his shoulder to make sure the trio of men hadn’t left their post yet. How long does it take to look at one map?

             The frustration was resonating in his skull when he tried to change his tactic. He walked around for a moment, before stopping and standing perfectly still; he felt a small tug in the back of his mind. He turned and walked down a different row of maps until he was at a wall –the first one he had seen in hours – there, against it was a well-lit but seemingly neglected pedestal with a single scrap of a map on it. This map had a glass covering over it. Oikawa was ready to move on until his eyes caught a glimpse of something interesting on the map. He squinted his eyes a bit, blurring out his vision until the darkness of the background pushed aside the small clusters of dots. The darkness merged together to form the shape of a bird in the very center of the map. Oikawa’s eyes widened. This couldn’t be a coincidence.

             “It’s a shame isn’t it.” A deep, unfamiliar voice rumbled in his right ear. Oikawa whipped around to look up at the tall man. He immediately recognized his figure as the one standing at the map Iwaizumi wanted. He was well illuminated now under the light intended for the map. His features were sharp, but not abrasive. His eyes looked Oikawa up and down while the shorter man just gaped. “That we only have a fragment of this map, I mean.” His voice rolled out like a bolder thrown into a deep cave.

             “Yes. A real shame.” Oikawa gasped out, glad that his voice was steadier than he expected. The man simply hummed, nodding as he turned and walked away, his figure followed by the other two men with him fading into the gloom of the room.

             Oikawa, still shaken by the odd encounter, whipped around to find Iwaizumi. He rushed over to him, meeting him half way, “Did Ushijima say something to you?” he asked, his voice panicked.

             “He said, ‘it’s a shame we only have a fragment of this map.’ And then he just walked away! What a weirdo Iwa, he walked right up behind me and spoke into my ear!” A shiver ran down his spine. “How do you know him? I did not know you associated with such strange individuals.”

             “I do _not_ associate with him; we were just classmates here. Which map was he talking about? Did you get a read off of it?”

             “It is over here, but I could not do anything with him breathing down my neck. Besides, it is under glass.” Oikawa led Iwaizumi to the shred of paper.

             “That’s odd. I am surprised they have this scrap out here and haven’t found anything linked to it yet, is there and information card?” Iwaizumi began looking around the podium but came up empty handed. “Why did this one catch your eye?” He turned to look at Oikawa. His eyes were deep and intense. The light of the room was dancing in his blown-out pupils – Oikawa ripped his eyes away.

             “Theres a bird,” Oikawa whispered. Iwaizumi looked at him like he had grown a second head before turning to look for himself.

             “Where?” The exacerbation evident in his tone. He bent down to look closer. “Dumbass, there’s no star cluster that looks like a bird here.” He scowled at Oikawa.

             “Really? After all we have learned, you’re still looking at the stars and not what is surrounding them?” Oikawa huffed. Iwaizumi’s eye twitched before he looked back at the scrap of paper. “Look right in the middle and squint your eyes a bit.”

             “This is horrible map reading practices.”

             “Just do it.”

             “Shit….” Iwaizumi stood up but refused to look Oikawa in the eye.

             “See it?” His eyes were on Oikawa, fiery.

             “Yes.”

             “Glad you see things my way. Now how do we get it out so I can touch it?” Iwaizumi shrugged before looking around to make sure there was no one around them. He crouched down to examine the podium.

             “It doesn’t look very secure… or that theres any security wires.” With that he shrugged before pulling out a knife and jamming it under the lid.

             “Wa- You’re just going to break it open just like that?!” Oikawa squawked.

             “Shut up!” Iwaizumi grunted in exertion. With a huff, the wood frame popped off and Iwaizumi was able to reach in and grab the map. Once placed on top of the glass covering, Oikawa rested a single finger right in the center. His heart jumped as a single, ice-cold finger was placed right below his sternum. He placed his whole hand on the fragment and felt his own hand, frozen, sting from his belly button all the way to the center of his chest. Oddly, he felt tiny pinpricks around the rest of his body and had flashes of different places flash across his eyes in quick succession, not letting him see much detail. He ripped his hand away, the feeling dissipating. Oikawa rested his own, warm hand on his chest.

             Oikawa cursed. After hours of searching, they had a lead. He looked over to see Iwaizumi rolling up the scrap before tying to shove it in his bag. “Have you lost your mind? What are you doing?” Oikawa whispered angerly.

             “We need – I’m a dumbass.” His eyes focused on where Oikawa’s hand rested on his chest. He cursed forcefully before unfolding the map and kneeling to stick it back in its frame. When he had placed it back in the center, he removed his knife, trying to get the wood to lay flat once more, before pulling a tube out of his back and putting an off-gray goo along the fracture.

             “Ok. Come on, let’s go, let’s go.” Iwaizumi pushed Oikawa towards the entrance.

             “Can we see the Planetarium?” Oikawa asked softly, his hopes high.

             Iwaizumi sighed, rubbing at his brow. He looked up at Oikawa with big eyes, “We can’t today. This took way longer than I thought, we need to regroup with the rest of the crew.” Iwaizumi had told Oikawa ‘no’ more than once before. But something about this one was different. The other times always held an air that it was a ‘not right now’ rather than a ‘never,’ but it was in his eyes. Seeing his classmate had spooked him; he had no intention of coming back here ever again. Oikawa tried desperately to keep the disappointment off his face, but he could see his emotions mirrored on Iwaizumi’s. The sudden drop of his eyes and any attempt at a cheerful smile was smashed. He knew what he had said, what he had done.

             Oikawa turned and walked blindly towards the exit.

             “Tooru, wait, I –“

             “Let us just go Iwaizumi. We need to meet up with the crew and tell them what I found.” Oikawa knew his voice was cold, but he was hurt. Here he was, at the literal center of the know cosmos, with knowledge at the tip of his fingers. He had thought, somewhere deep in his heart, that this place held more than just maps. If he could just find more information, he could help his people sooner – save them sooner. The guilt was growing in him faster than he could fight it down. He was out. He was free. It had only been a month, and yet he had experienced so much, things beyond his wildest dreams. And he had laughed, he was enjoying himself! He was sick to his stomach by the time he slammed through the front doors of the glass exterior. He did not save one glance for the dome in the center. He had learned at a young age that some dreams were useless hopes to be cut out of the mind, for everyone’s own good.

             He fished around his pocket until he pulled out the knotted fabrics. He flipped through them until he thought he had a general understanding of where he needed to go. The members all seemed to be in a similar place close to the docks. Oikawa stalked forward with little regard for how Iwaizumi was trying to stop him. He knew where he was going.

 

* * *

 

             He had calmed down by the time they reached the small tavern. Its wooden structure stood out like a sore thumb surrounded by concrete and glass. Maybe that’s why the numerous crews docked in port liked it so much. He and Iwaizumi had fallen into a strict silence as they walked. Eventually, the captain had given up and simply fallen in line to follow Oikawa.

             The place was immediately warm and opening compared to the harsh city surrounding it. There was a hearth in the center, casting its light and warmth around the large open room. Upon entering, Oikawa immediately locked eyes with Yahaba. He took a deep breath, just reveling in being in his brother’s presence once more. The familiar cool of his skin relaxing him as they embraced before sitting with the rest of the crew. It wasn’t until they sat down that Oikawa noticed the quiet demeaner of the crew was only matched by the loud stares that moved between Oikawa and Iwaizumi as the two did not sit next to each other. In fact, Watari had to move over because Iwaizumi broke script from their assumption that he would want to sit next to Oikawa. Everyone was tense at this point. It wasn’t until Oikawa looked at Kyotani that he realized how to put them out of their misery.

             “ _I_ found something.” He knew he was being petty with his words. But his feelings were hurt! He had been the one to find it! Iwaizumi flinched at his words. That took a bit of the wind out of his sails. There was a difference between being petty and rubbing it in Iwaizumi’s face. His voice was softer the next time he spoke, but he hoped they would just think it was because he didn’t want others to hear. “We found a scrap of a map with no information about it. But there was a bird hidden in the darkness of the map. It matches perfectly to a spot on my chest.”

             A cheer rose up around the table. Another round of drinks was ordered, and suddenly everyone was joining in the festivities. Oikawa and Iwaizumi were pulled into the fray with headlocks and slaps on the back. The crew worked effectively at bringing up the mood of their captain and Map, and they didn’t stop until everyone was laughing and singing along with Hanamaki and Matsukawa.

             Once everyone had had a few drinks, a man who wasn’t their server walked over. “My captain would like to speak with you.” Oikawa looked over from his conversation with Watari to see the man staring intently at him. His eyebrows shot up.

             “Get yur capt’n to come get ‘im himself! Or least say his name!” Hanamaki snapped at the man, the slur in his voice was strong.

             “He does not want to talk to you.” The man turned to the red-head with disgust. But he did motion to a table at the opposite end of the room. Through the smoke, Oikawa thought he could make out an intense aura and large frame.

             “Fucken Shiratorizawa!” Matsukawa swore. Like his words unlocked something in Oikawa, he recognized the man from the academy. The messenger looked like he desperately wanted to tell the engineer to watch his mouth. Oikawa glanced over at Iwaizumi, who was glaring daggers into his mug of ale.

             “Captain?” Oikawa asked.

             Iwaizumi ground his teeth before replying. “Go see what he wants.” An unspoken, “it’s not like I have any control over you, anyways” passed between them. Oikawa shrugged, standing and moving towards the table. Just as the messenger was out of earshot, having walked away, content, a hand grasped Oikawa’s wrist, pulling back towards the table, it was Hanamaki. He looked immediately sober, even after how drunk he had seemed a minute ago.

             “The captain may not say it, but don’t trust those guys. They are bad news.” Oikawa nodded intently with Hanamaki.

             He walked slowly across the room to where the other crew sat. As he walked, he casually turned on his ear piece. He knew it caught the crew’s attention because they immediately went silent, the tone ringing in their ears. Someone cleared their throat and they resumed, meaningless, gibberish of a conversation to hide how they were eavesdropping. He just hoped the microphone would be strong enough to pick up what the man would say. The other crew moved aside to let Oikawa sit next to Ushijima. Oikawa thought it odd, but sat down none the less. He faked looking relaxed as best he could before turning to the larger man.

             “I do not take well with being summoned.” His soul ascended at finally being able to take his frustration out on someone.

             “You are a rare creature to find Oikawa Tooru.” His name rolling off the stranger’s tongue raised the hairs on his body. He immediately dropped any pretense of casual conversation.

             “How do you know my name?”

             “Oh, I know more than just your name. I know everything. Ironically, I had given up my hopes of ever meeting you, and here you come waltzing right up to my table. Although, to be honest, I had expected Iwaizumi to put up more of a fight for you. Maybe he doesn’t know your worth yet. But I do.” He avoided looking at Oikawa, until that last sentence broke the air. In this light, his features were softened by the gentle light of the fire. But his eyes were alight. He was a man who would get his way. In contrast to his eyes, the rest of his body was relaxed into the bench they shared. His fingers drummed casually along his mug.

             Oikawa’s heart was racing, his body screaming to run away from this devilish man. Was he the one who had been hunting the Blue Castle that Nekoma had warned them about? What were his intentions? Was this all a bluff or did he really know everything?

             “I can get you what you want most in the world. I can give you everything,” the man breathed, his breath crisp in the smoke-filled room.

             “And what is it that I want most in the world?”

             “The Birds’ treasure. Obviously, I am the best candidate to get it for you. With your help, of course. In fact, you are the key piece I have been missing this whole time. A child of the Darkness. Come with me, that measly crew will get you nowhere. They will suck you dry until there is nothing left.”

             “And how am I supposed to believe you?” Oikawa relaxed the slightest bit at knowing this man didn’t truly know everything.

             “Join me and I will show you.”

             “That is a bold request seeing as you have not yet offered me any real reason beyond just your word.”

             The man huffed. “It would not be such a bold request if you were not so naive.”

             “Again. You make claims without backing them up. I grow tired of this. Either stop mincing your words or I am leaving.” The man sat up right at that.

             “Very well. I would hate to waste your _precious_ time,” the sneer was heavy in his voice. “You are naive because you do not even know who you are speaking to, or with whom you have been traveling with, who’s lies you have been drinking in. That _crew_ is a sinking ship. I bet you have been bringing in more profits than anyone else. They are dreamers with no reality to back them up. They will only pull you down and then it will be too late for you to realize you should have taken me up on my offer. My crew is known through the whole cosmos, everyone knows we will be the ones to find the Birds’ treasure. So just accept it. Join me, Oikawa Tooru.”

             “If you can show me one single bit of physical proof that you can get me to the treasure, I will go with you.” The table was tense with Oikawa’s proposition.

             “Very well, but you are not allowed to look at any maps or mirrors. I don’t want you taking any information and running back to the scum,” the man declared before abruptly standing from his seat, the rest of the crew following. Oikawa had to hold in his surprised scoff. These people obviously did not know anything at all. But maybe that was better for him.

             “Oh, right now?” Oikawa stuttered.

             “Of course. With your aid, I will lead us to the treasure by the end of the fortnight.” The crew broke into a raucous laughter as they left the pub, Oikawa in tow. Oikawa kept his head forward, not looking at the stares, that were verging on hostile, he was getting from the Blue Castle crew.

             Oikawa had to work hard to keep his disgust veiled as the Shiratorizawa crew moved like a boulder through a field of flowers. They, refusing to split up, or space out, forced people to quickly stumble out of their way to avoid being trampled. There was no respect in the peoples’ eyes, only fear, and resentment. Oikawa held in his scoff. These were not a people who would sacrifice anything in order to save Oikawa’s people. They are the ones who would suck Oikawa dry. They would find the treasure, they may give him a small amount and then they would kick him to the curb. Or they would use him until they had found every scrap of fortune they could. Oikawa now had no doubts about how far they would go to get what they want or whether they were the ones hunting the Blue Castle before. The glares from the Blue Castle crew made sense, the distain with which Iwaizumi spoke about Ushijima clicked.

             There was no way Oikawa could lead these people to the library, or even a scrap of the treasure. Their smug laughter and crude jokes tossed his stomach. _These_ were people of the Light.

             They were in the port now. Oikawa flinched as Kunimi called out to him from where he stood on the deck of the Blue Castle loading cargo. Oikawa kept his head down, not feeling up to looking at his younger crewmate. As much as Oikawa was expecting the Shiratorizawa crew to mock Kunimi, they did not so much as acknowledge him. Oikawa wished on his whole being that he could have apologized to Kunimi as he walked by and boarded a ship further down the dock.

             By no means was the Blue Castle a dark ship, in fact, there was still too much light for Oikawa to be comfortable with, but that does not compare to the Shiratorizawa ship. Even with Oikawa’s dark glasses, the ship was painfully bright. Were their sails still emitting light even in broad daylight? Even in the corridors of the ship, the lights were up too high, they were putting off so much heat Oikawa thought he would start sweating just walking by. The men in front of him quickly stopped, blocking off the path. Ushijima turned around.

             “We need to cover your head now.” His voice echoed around the hallway as if it were made of stone.

             “Excuse me?” Oikawa was flabbergasted. This was more than he anticipated. This whole place made his skin crawl.

             “I told you. You are not allowed to look in any mirrors, or maps.”

             “So, I just will not look at them.”

             “No.” He cut Oikawa off, refusing any arguments. A black sack was tossed over Oikawa’s head as he was pushed further into the hallway. He cursed under his breath. That must have caught the attention of Iwaizumi on the other end of his comm.

             “What is it?” He heard a soft whisper in his ear.

             “I may have made a mistake.” He said, soft as a breath. Oikawa pictured the path of turns they were taking as they led him further into the ship. His training in the darkness of his own planet allowing him to memorize the way he needed to get out. He could tell they were trying to get him lost by doubling back or taking him down stairs and then back up different ones. This was all getting on his nerves. _Finally_ , they stopped. There was a sound of a door being unlocked and suddenly Oikawa was pushed inside. The feeling that this may have all been a trap to lock him in the ship, hit him like a sword to the gut. Thankfully, after the door closed, the hood was removed.

             The room they were in was small, with only Oikawa, Ushijima, and a small wooden box in it. The door was closed behind them, Oikawa was sure the crew members were guarding it. Ushijima cleared his throat, pulling Oikawa’s attention to where he stood next to the box.

             “This was recovered a few years ago. My first taste into the Birds’ treasure, the moment that changed my life forever.” Ushijima spoke with so much haughty arrogance to his voice. He opened the box, pulling out a single gold coin that was worn with age. Oikawa held out his hand, preparing himself for what he might see.   Ushijima hesitated for a moment, the briefest of faulters before he handed the coin over and moving to stand in front of the door. Oikawa worked hard to steady his breath and try to look as natural as possible as visions flashed in front of his eyes. His mind was immediately split into countless directions, the floor began spinning, rising up to meet him. A coin, one of the ones Iwaizumi had given to him, fell out of his pocket, clattering on the floor. Ushijima picked it up immediately, shoving it in the box, closing the lid, before picking up Oikawa’s inert body, yelling at his crew and storming out of the room with Oikawa thrown over his shoulder. Meanwhile, Oikawa’s brain was so overloaded with information, he allowed the men to handle him like a sack of flower for the sake of keeping his strong grasp on the coin. He tried to push the visions from his mind, but they pursued him, forcing themselves into his consciousness, begging for his attention – to be found. Flashes of libraries, stacks of treasures, room after room showed the depth of this treasure, all of it neatly tucked away in a cool, dark, fortress. His body shook slightly under the waves of information pouring into him, his skin alight with fire as his skin morphed and moved.

             Finally, they were back on the deck. Somehow, he was seeing what his eyes were seeing while also having the images flash around his mind. It was all too much. But it was not the same, the ship must have cast off while they were wandering the hull. The darkness of open space comforted him, that is, until his glasses were ripped from his eyes and the light of the sails seared his retinas. He looked around bleary eyed, still incapable of moving his body, but the cool touch of the air soothed his skin, and the smooth worn wood on his back, an anchor.

             The crew was huddled around him, all speaking words that flowed through his ears with no meaning. The stream of vocalizations all melding together with no sense of rhyme or rhythm for him to grasp on to. There was static in his ear from the piece, he must be out of their range.

             Their faces all looked identical. Formless, no details anywhere, just smooth skin where their features should me, until he found Ushijima. He still had his face. His voice cut through the stream.

             “Someone tell me what is wrong with him!” His voice barreled through Oikawa’s muddled head, shattering everything else.

             “It looks like he is having a seizure! Did he see a mirror or any of our maps?” A voice replied. The edges of Oikawa’s vision were darkening. Their voices converged once again as their faces lost all shape. His eyes rolled back as he prayed his hand remained firmly around the coin.

 

* * *

 

             The Darkness was bliss. And yet, something still called him back. He was _not_ going to die like this!

             “Do you want to stay here?” A voice rolled.

             “Yes.” Oikawa breathed. “No!” He yelled. “I – I want to go back to Iwaizumi. But I am lost forever, so I might as well stay here.”

             “You know the Darkness is united. If you desire him, then go to him.” The voice replied.

             “Hajime is of the Light. I have been told this.”

             “Darkness and Light, though they oppose each other, they are not permanent fixings.”

             “But the Darkness – I thought it had been around forever.”

             “Yes. But if things never change, the Light would never have been born.”

             “What does that even mean?!”

             “You seek too hard of stances. They are only surface level.”

             “But I am of the Darkness and Hajime is of the Light. How does that change?”

             “One cannot walk willingly into the Darkness, without the Darkness embracing them.”

             “So, Iwaizumi is… becoming a child of the Darkness?”

             “It is not that simple. While one cannot change their own nature, that does not mean that they can never change who they are.”

             Oikawa groaned in frustration. “Just say what you mean!”

             “There is no meaning other than what you give to what is said. You have led your crew willingly into Darkness, and they follow. They are slowly turning their backs to the Light, allowing the Darkness to take the smallest of places in their burning souls.”

             “Like the Birds’.”

             “Perhaps.”

             “How do I find the Darkness in his heart?”

             “By Jumping.”

 

* * *

 

            Oikawa coughed himself awake. Wheezing, he looked around. He was in a room, probably somewhere in the hull of the ship. He looked down to find his hand clenched so tight his knuckles were white. He slowly began relaxing his hand, the muscles screaming, his fingers barely moving as if they were being held in place by something unseen. But when it was finally open, there, in the center of his enflamed skin, sat the golden coin. His mind still tried to connect to it, but he was too exhausted. He shoved the coin down under his foot, in his boot, separated by the fabric of what Iwaizumi called a “sock.”

             Oikawa then stood up, his body still groggy from his fit, but there was an odd energy resting inside of him, pushing him just enough to keep him going. He tested the door, surprised to find it unlocked. He let himself out into the hallway, his senses heightened and ready for what was going to happen. He slowly began moving through the corridors, as he had been taught to move through the darkness. How was this place so big?! He followed where his head said to go, or what it his heart? Regardless, he moved through the ship with an odd sense of surety. Finally, he made it through the maze and began hearing voices from above him. He moved quicker now, the walls becoming a blur as he moved as fast as he could without making a sound. His fingers skimmed the wall as he took one final turn and was faced with a set of stairs leading up and out of the hull.

             His adrenaline was at an all time high as he cracked open the door and peeked out onto the deck. The crew was all sitting around, talking amongst themselves. Oikawa was worried this meant they must be far out in open space if they did not need to man their posts, but that idea didn’t seem right. Oikawa quickly noticed something was wrong, the stars were not moving. Were they at a standstill? Oikawa recognized the star patterns, just as he recognized the glow of the atmosphere still shining over the rim of the ship. They must have stopped right as Oikawa collapsed, maybe, they were debating what to do.

             Oikawa would take that problem out of his hands as he burst through the doors, drawing the attention of the crew. They all whipped around to look at him in shock. He oriented himself quickly towards the planet. In his mind, he could still see all the details of where the port would be. The crew was yelling at him now as he approached the railing of the ship.

             “Hey back away from there!” One person called.

             “Don’t do anything stupid you’re just disoriented!” Another one yelled.

             “Oikawa – Tooru, do not do anything rash,” Ushijima’s voice washed over him. Oikawa whipped around to face him. He was walking slowly down the stairs from the upper deck of the ship, his hands raised to make him look nonaggressive. But Oikawa’s skin was crawling, his heart pounding, his ears ringing with the mantra of “JUMP” that just grew louder and louder!

             Oikawa took a deep breath, pulled his glasses to cover his eyes.

             He jumped over-board into the grasps of dark, empty space.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YALL IM ALIVE BUT IM BARELY BREATHING! I am so happy with how this chapter came out! And just in time for me to be steamrolled with work once more! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, let me know any thoughts you have! I hope you have an amazing week <3 As always, follow me on twitter [@Skyclimber14](https://twitter.com/SkyClimber14)  
> ps: In general, I am unsure of how to put tags or warning on this fic, so if there is anything you think should be tagged let me know, I am happy to receive input


	21. Where the Skies End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TW: If ya'll have a fear of heights/ graphic depictions of falling, you may want to skip this chapter. There is no violence to it, but if the description of it messes with you, please don't read this chapter, or at least skip to the very end.

The freefall was farther than Oikawa was anticipating, a scream threatened to break out as his limbs flailed in the gravity and the darkness of empty space began creeping along the edges of his vision. He thought he could see some of the crew peaking over the edge of the ship, but they turned away right as Oikawa hit the edge of the atmosphere.

Everything stops.

The impact knocks the breath from his lungs, it was like being slammed against a stone wall. He struggles to move his body as a darkness thicker than any he has ever experienced wraps around him. It was a weird sensation; one Oikawa doesn’t think he could ever explain to another person without them experiencing it first. The darkness around him was so pure it blocked out everything from his vision, the ship he was just on, the stars around him, even the light from the planet was blotched out.

Was he dying?

He tries wiggling his body around, and while he could move, it was like wading through a thick, heavy, syrup. His movements were jerky, yet smooth, like they would move before getting stuck again and having to break free.

Oikawa had no way of telling where he was going, if he was even moving at all. He tried counting seconds, to measure the passage of time, but what did that matter if he was not even moving, let alone alive? He knew he should be panicking, knew he should be worried, and yet every time that feeling welled up in him, the weight of the darkness smothered it out. His body was pounded into non-feeling as he just lay there, suspended in non-death.

Just as his body was pushed into docility, so too was he schooling his own mind, not letting his mind wander, to reminisce.   His emotions seemed like fire crackers here, they popped and they burned him.

This went on for what felt like years. But as Oikawa came to accept it, he fell into the deepest sense of peace he had ever known. He lay there, floating on the brink of nothingness, his mind and his body were finally one. He was simply existing. Sure, he was thinking, but his thoughts moved through him as leaves in a stream, nothing more than passing ideas. And while the movement of his thoughts were passive, there was still the active movement of his mind and the acknowledgement of his thoughts.

It was a simple thing, learning.

There were no more aggressive flashes of images before his eyes, no more swooping vertigo as his world was ripped from him, only a calm acknowledgement of the cosmos through the eyes of the Darkness.

Oikawa’s peace was disrupted as a faint ring of blue appeared around his peripheral vision. The first evidence that he was not, in fact dead, and was indeed, moving through space in a protective bubble of Darkness.

His heart skipped a beat as a voice slipped through his head. Kiyoko?

“Hold your breath.”

Oikawa instinctively took a deep breath, feeling the thick, not-air of the darkness wash in and settle deep in his lungs. It permeated his whole body now. He felt it in his very soul, felt his body respond to the call.

And just like that, the floor opened up beneath him, dropping him into a freefall. The light pierced his eyes; the fiery air stung his skin; he flopped around frantically trying to get his bearings while not letting go of his breath. He tried to angle himself so he would fall faster, but it was hard to override the instinct to flail.

If it wasn’t for the wind buffeting him every which-way, the stratosphere would have been serene. The light was bright, but it seemed dull compared to the looming darkness just beyond. Nothing moved here, and all he could see below him was a thick layer of fluffy clouds.

He closed his eyes and tried to calm his racing thoughts. What was he going to do now?! “Jump” the voice said! Sure, just jump! No need to worry about how hitting the ground from terminal velocity will do more than just kill him! Oikawa struggled to hold back his screams. He tried to focus on the bit of Darkness in his lungs.

The Darkness is one. Find Iwaizumi. He had to find Hajime. Oikawa reached into his shirt, pulling out his bundle of cloths. With his hands trembling, he called their location into his mind. He grunted in frustration as he had to flip through all of the strips until he found Iwaizumi’s. He was pacing in his office in the Blue castle, he was talking to someone, Yahaba? Oikawa tried to concentrate on what they were saying, but the roaring wind in his ears pushed all the words far from him.

He opened his eyes, trying to steady himself so he could orient toward the city. If he was going to shoot like a bullet through space, he might as well be on target. The cloudscape grew larger as he fell closer. It felt like he had been falling for days.

And then, the first wisps of frail, condensed water slipped across his cheek. He expected to splash through the cloud level, instead it was like walking into a dense mist. It chilled his skin, melding with his sweat and rolling off his body, soaking his clothes. He shivered. And suddenly, he was totally lost. All of his orientation points were gone. His vision was nothing more than a wall of indiscernible whiteness. The light danced off the drops of water, causing everything to glitter and shimmer, completely ruining his depth perception. It grew harder and harder to feel the wind blowing him with all the water running off him. He tried to squint through it, but his eyelashes were soaked through, blotting out his vision even more. He closed his eyes. He held the knot binding all the straps of cloth in his palm before weaving each one in between his clenched fingers. With each piece in direct and separate contact with his skin, he flipped through the views of his crewmates seamlessly. He pieced the images together, trying to bring the whole of the Blue Castle together in his mind.

His thinking was fuzzy from exhaustion, his body going stiff and numb under the cold. He held himself together as best he could, occasionally sinking back into the Darkness in his chest for a moment of respite before returning to face this hell all on his own.

When he wasn’t correcting his trajectory, and minding his breath, he was holding fast to the images of his people, and the crew. They were the reason he was doing this. The reason he would keep getting up every time reality was pulled out from under him, his driving force, his will to live. It was times like these, moments of complete absurdity, that he allowed himself to dream of what would happen after. What would he do when his people were safe? Would he stay on the planet with them and tend to the re-cultivation? Would he settle into his role as leader along side the council, forever to be honored as the savior, the chosen one? Would he stay with Iwaizumi and the Blue Castle? Jumping from planet to planet, black hole to black hole, finding lost treasure? The more he thought about it, those were his only options. Sure, he could find a different crew to work with as Ushijima had suggested, but… It did not feel right. Every second he was away from Iwaizumi; he was still captivated by him.

Oikawa scoffed at himself, breaking his reverie. Is this really the situation that would bring him to consider his feelings? If he made it out of this predicament, he would consider thinking about it more.

Movement to Oikawa’s right caught his eye. He turned his head, just in time to see a break in the cloud wall. The strong blue of the sea popped through the constant wash of white he had been looking at for far too long now. Oikawa, desperate for something different, threw himself over, and broke through, back into open air.

Oikawa cursed. He was on target, thankfully, but he was way closer than he anticipated. He flipped back through the cloths still gripped in his fist. He was so close he could almost tell which ship was his. His fingers, cold and wrinkly, fumbled with the piece still in his ear, trying to turn it back on. It crackled to life, but it was so staticky, the connection so weak, only broken words came through.

That didn’t matter too much for Oikawa, as the open view of the vast, seemingly unending sea of blue, grew closer and closer, Oikawa could not contain his screams anymore. He floundered, trying to flatten himself out against the ground, so he would fall slower, but the difference was only marginal. He knew his voice was coming through the comm when he started hearing the crew’s confusion come through the static. He flipped through his catalog of the crew until he found someone on deck. Kunimi. All his screams now were directed right at that man.

“LOOK UP, KUNIMI!!” Oikawa’s voice cracked as he yelled, his vision flipping between the rush of the waves and Kunimi and the rest of the crew frantically trying to figure out what was happening. Apparently, his voice was broken up to them too.

“O – k – wa?” He heard someone ask. Was that Yahaba? He located the man, he was below deck, but looked as if he might be moving up. Oikawa’s heart leapt into his chest.

“SHIGERU!!!”

“OIKAWA?!” Iwaizumi’s voice broke through the static.

“Captain! Get onto the deck right _NOW_!” Kyotani called.

“IWAIZUMI HAJIME, I SWEAR ON EVERYTHING YOU LOVE IF YOU LET ME DIE AFTER ALL THIS, I AM NEVER SPEAKING TO YOU AGAIN!!!!” Oikawa wailed.

“YOU IDIOT! You complete absolute _dumbass_ , what in the hell were you thinking!”

“STOP SCOLDING ME AND COME GET ME!!” Oikawa heard Iwaizumi barking some orders, but they went right through his ears. Hajime was coming to get him. He was going to be ok. But that did nothing to calm his heart, because he could clearly make out details on the ship, and watched in what felt like slow motion as Iwaizumi mounted a glider and shot out into open water.

“Captain you’re going to have to slow him down before you grab him!”

“I _know_!” Iwaizumi gritted through his teeth as he zoomed across the water. He shot the glider up into the air, rushing up at an angle to meet Oikawa. Oikawa cried as he shot past him, before coming down beside him so that both of them were spiraling towards the water, that was way, way, way **too** close. Iwaizumi wrapped his arm around Oikawa, tugging him harshly against his chest before cranking the sail back to try to slow them down. Oikawa felt his stomach lurch as he buried his face into Iwaizumi’s chest, wrenched his eyes closed, and held on for dear life, trying to keep his feet from slipping off the side of the board.

“Hold on,” Iwaizumi called over the wind before he jerked hard on the steering, pulling them level with the water while whipping a turn to try to slow themselves down further. The weight of the turn threw Oikawa further into Iwaizumi, who seamlessly adjusted his grip on the other man so that he was securely anchored to his body. Iwaizumi continued maneuvering them through the open water back towards the ship as they cruised at a much more reasonable speed.

Oikawa was shaking considerably now. He laughed at the realization. He had been shaking the whole time, let’s be honest. Still not looking, Oikawa assumed that they had reached the dock when he heard the yelling. It all melded together into one stream his brain was too exhausted to try to decipher.

He felt someone haul him up onto the deck, where he sat for a moment before he was a puddle in Iwaizumi’s lap once again. The rest of the crew had quieted down as Iwaizumi sat there, legs crossed on the wood of the dock, rocking the man in his lap gently back and forth. Oikawa nestled his face further against Iwaizumi’s chest while the other man tried to rub some warmth back into his skin. He felt him pet his hair before a gentle warmth of a kiss was placed on the top of his head. It was short and then Iwaizumi went back to rocking and rubbing as someone finally ran up with a blanket to drape over Oikawa.

Oikawa let one last harsh shiver rack his body before he shifted to let his forehead rest against Iwaizumi’s collarbones. He let out a raspy, groan, his voice was shot.

“What the actual _fuck_ just happened.” Iwaizumi breathed, his hands moving to hold Oikawa’s shoulders in place so he could lean back to look at him.

Oikawa laughed a short, broken laugh. “I found you.” He sounded delirious as he poked a finger into Iwaizumi’s shoulder.

“You left me, you idiot.” Iwaizumi grunted.

“You know, you are allowed to say you missed me.” Oikawa coughed; his breath heavy in his lungs.

“You’re the biggest dumbass I have ever met.”

“But I am your dumbass.” Oikawa whined.

“Yea.” Oikawa was shocked he had agreed, he was expecting another insult to be thrown his way.

“Come on, let’s get you two back onto the ship before the cops come asking questions.” A voice, maybe Hanamaki. Oikawa tried to lift his head to find Yahaba, but his world was still spinning. He yanked his eyes closed and leaned back into Iwaizumi.

Oikawa scoffed as Iwaizumi lifted him effortlessly, like nothing more than a sack of potatoes in his arms and carried him back onto the ship. Oikawa breathed a sigh of relief as the familiar smells hit him. He tried to move a hand to trace a finger over the wall, but his muscles simply spasmed in exhaustion and sent his arm flopping around. Even moving a single finger felt like lifting a whole ship. Oikawa groaned loudly.

“What’s wrong now?” Iwaizumi muttered.

“I just looked death in the face! Am I not allowed to be relieved?! So cruel Iwa!” Oikawa whined in full force.

“Shut up. You aren’t the only one who almost died.” Iwaizumi grumbled back.

“So cranky.”

“You’re going to wish everyone is as cranky as me when you’re feeling better.”

“Who could possibly be more crankier than Iwa?!” Oikawa’s words were slurring now as he began to settle back into the warmth of the blanket and Iwaizumi holding him. They were almost to the office now, the rest of the crew in tow.

Iwaizumi kicked the door open and hauled the pitiful looking Oikawa in before setting him down in the deep chair where Iwaizumi usually sat.

“Oikawa Tooru how _DARE_ you?!” Yahaba seethed. _Oh._

_That’s_ why Oikawa couldn’t find him on the deck. Oikawa could hear him stalking close to his chair, so he cracked his eyes open. Just as his eyes came into focus on his brother’s face, his hand came in contact with his cheek. The slap reverberated through his whole body, but the pain was only a distant feeling. Oikawa was more surprised than anything.

Just as Oikawa reopened his eyes to look at his companion, he heard his knees hit the floor and Yahaba’s head was in his lap as sobs shook his body.

His fingers were white as he gripped the blanket wrapped around Oikawa, “How dare you leave me like that!” His voice shook in anger, relief, sadness, and any number of other emotions. Oikawa’s heart broke. “No, no. Not even that! How dare you come back like _that_!!” Yahaba looked up, and Oikawa was worried he was going to hit him again, not that he didn’t deserve it, but he was worried how well his body would be able to handle it. Only, Yahaba didn’t hit him, his face crumbled into a broken smile as tears streamed down his face and his arms shot out to wrap around Oikawa, bringing him into a crushing hug. Oikawa wiggled his arms out of the blanket to reciprocate.

The two held each other for a moment. “I know it will not make everything better… but would it help knowing I won?” Oikawa’s strength was flagging, he knew he had to do this now before he crashed. With that, even as a small whisper, the room was electric and staring right at him. He asked Yahaba to take off his boots, before he reached down into it and pulled out the small coin. He didn’t even feel tiny pulses of electricity this time, his body too drained for anything other than telling the crew.

“I grabbed this coin. From their super-secret treasure room. It will lead us. Right to the treasure.” Oikawa gasped out, his throat dry and raspy. He swallowed thickly between each statement. Oikawa barely got it all out before he started drifting.

“HEY! You better not be dying!” He heard Kyotani bellow at him. His concern shocked him.

“No. Just sleeping.”

Oikawa’s world faded into blissful darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHEW! Ya'll I did, it! This chapter was really giving me a hard time! I hope you liked it! Please let me know your thoughts on how I portrayed everything :)   
> I have finals in the coming weeks, so the next chapter may not be for a few weeks, thank you for your patience and sticking with me this far!

**Author's Note:**

> Hey What's up? Thanks for reading the first chapter! I hope it wasn't too boring, the next one should be up soon and the adventure really begins! I hope you stick around with me as I try my best to write and post on some sort of schedule while I handle being a full time student!


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